Lanterns
by A-Terrible-Anonymess
Summary: Aang/Azula - The Avatar giving the deposed princess a bit of therapy, simple as that. Well, it would be, if his friends would just stay out of the way for one night...
1. Preparations: Aang

Alright, disclaimer, you know the deal- I don't own anything except this little chunk of fan fiction. If you don't understand this part, then don't worry, you're not supposed to- Thanks for forcing me to write this thing, /a/.

--

Aang stared into the mirror as he straightened out his robes for the 10th time this hour- it helped him to block out Sokka's objections behind him.

"Aang, you can't be serious about this- there's no possible way we can protect you out there!" Aang sighed, fidgeting slightly with the sash acting as his belt- he had changed from the heavy yellow robes he had received in Ba Sing Se into the outfit he had worn during the last days of the war. As long as he wore these, the people at the festival outside would most likely assume he was in costume, like so many of the citizens enjoying the celebration in the streets below.

Aang let his gaze leave the mirror, and Sokka's supremely frustrated expression, and looked out at the moon- lit party goers in the alleys of the city. Sokka slid into his field of vision once again, obviously tired of Aang avoiding his questions. "Aang, this is serious, alright? You're not allowed to stare lovingly at your admirers until you convince me you haven't gone crazy"

Aang averted his gaze once again to the mirror, and then paced towards the window where Sokka stood. "Look, I know that this must seem like a stupid idea to you-"

Sokka interrupted loudly, grabbing Aang's shoulders and spinning him around to face him. "This isn't a stupid idea! This isn't even remotely close to being a stupid idea! This is suicide, at best! If you go into that crowd we have no way to know what she might do."

Aang looked up at Sokka's eyes, wide with confusion and worry more than anger. "Sokka, that's the point. Trust me, this is the best way to handle this."

Sokka gritted his teeth, and decided to stop biting back what he had been wanting to say for the last month. "Aang, I know you're the Avatar and all, and that you seem to enjoy trying to help with the insane lightning throwing ex-princess, but it seems to me that the best way to handle this is to lock her away in a hole somewhere and throw away the key!"

"Sokka..."

He cut Aang off again- When he talked in that tone of voice usually meant some spiritual lecture that he wasn't in the mood for right now. "Aang, you could do it. Take her bending from her like you did Ozai. You could make sure she never gets another chance to hurt anyone, and instead you're going to take her to a celebration of the end of the war?! Aang, you're just begging for a disaster here!"

Aang shrugged out of Sokka's grasp, and put his hand on the window, watching the party for a few seconds. "Look, Sokka, I need you to understand something- what I did to Ozai, I did because I had to. In all honestly, I don't think that removing his bending was much better than killing him- I reached into his spirit and I changed it, Sokka. It seems so... wrong."

Sokka looked at the floor for a moment, trying to think of another way to handle Azula- anything but this. "Aang, I-"

This time, Aang cut in on him. "I could stop her if anything happened- but I won't have to. Nothing is going to happen as long as all the guards stay away for one night- I have to go with her alone"

"Aang, WHY alone?" Sokka looked out the window again- at the crowds of cheering and dancing Earth Kingdom citizens, noticing a surprising number of them dressed up like Aang. He had to admire the costumes, at least- they were almost all perfect matches for the orange and yellow robes Aang was wearing. At least he didn't have to worry about Aang being recognized out there. One especially energetic child even had a menacing scar painted over the sloppily painted arrow running on his back-

That was all it took to snap Sokka back to the problem at hand. He glanced back at Aang, noticing the very real scar that ran from the small of his back up to the middle of his shoulder blades, and spread out like a target in every direction. Sokka inwardly noted that it looked far more gruesome and menacing in person than it did painted on the child down in the streets. It had been fading, lately, but nothing like that could ever really go away.

"Sokka... I have to do it alone because it's the only way to prove I trust her."

"**Why** would you trust her?! She tried to kill all of us! She captured Suki! She tried to kill Mai! She almost killed Zuko! She tried to kill _Katara_!"

Aang winced. "Sokka-"

"And she _Did_ kill you, Aang! The only thing that brought you back was that we were lucky enough to still have the spirit water from the North Pole on hand!"

Aang remained silent for a few seconds, and absently lifted his left arm around to his back, feeling the twisting mark burning across his back. It never really stopped burning, he had found- it was a constant, gnawing sort of heat. Just enough to make sure he remembered it was there.

"Sokka, it's... different, now. She's not like she was before-"

Sokka shot him a bewildered glance. "Are you _kidding_? She's **exactly** the same! You can't even look at her without getting shot a death glare! She hates everyone and everything good in the world!"

Aang sighed again, rubbing one hand along the arrow marking on his head. "Sokka, trust me on this one, alright? That's just the kind of person she is- she's cold. But she's not evil- just... misguided." Sokka shot Aang another glare.

"**Zuko** was misguided, Aang. **Zuko** tried to _save_ our lives-"

"Zuko attacked us more times than Azula did, if you go back and count." Aang smiled playfully up at Sokka, hoping to lighten the mood in the tense room- instead, Sokka took on a stern, scolding face and walked briskly past Aang to the doorway, placing his hand on it and turning to face the Avatar.

"Aang... just tell me one thing. Can you make sure that nothing horrible is going to happen out there tonight? And I mean _Positive_?"

Aang looked out the window for a few seconds, then back at his reflection again, before setting his gaze on Sokka and the door he was barring. "Sokka, anything could happen out there- but I can tell you that it won't be because of her."

Sokka stood for a few seconds, scratched his head, put his face in both of his hands... and finally looked up at Aang defeated. "...Alright. Just... just be careful. And... good luck, I guess"

Aang gave a solemn nod before opening the door and stepping outside, being sure to leave his staff by the door. If he was going to do this, he had to do it right, after all. He glanced back at Sokka as he walked out the doorway. "Thanks, Sokka. And if it makes you feel better, if we aren't in by the time the party is over, then you can come looking for us with the whole Earth Kingdom army if you want."

Sokka shook his head again, and grinned despite himself. "If you aren't back by then, I think Katara would tear the town apart herself looking for you." Aang smiled again and turned, gently hopping and gliding down the stairs almost weightlessly. Now all that was left... was to wait until she arrived. Aang gulped, nervously.


	2. Preparations: Azula

Toph was standing very still against the wall of the room, remaining uncharacteristically quiet- and wondering who she was going to have to restrain next. She was quickly getting the impression that she was here to guard Azula, instead of guarding everyone from her.

Feeling everyone through the stone floors, it seemed like Katara was already on edge- Suki was keeping her cool slightly better, but she was still tense. Azula was the same as she always was- perfectly calm and collected, even held in the cold metal chair with restraints around her elbows, wrists, knees, ankles, and neck. The last Toph had heard, the girl was supposed to be insane- and yet you could tell the time by her heartbeat and never miss a second. Toph wasn't going to tell anyone she thought it, of course, but that was a little bit creepy- and also completely awesome.

The maids that dashed around the room and crowded around the ex-princess were, of course, absolutely terrified- Azula had been left enough room in her restraints to move her fingers, and so they were applying her makeup and straightening her hair as hurriedly as possible so that they might be allowed to leave.

For her part, Azula was holding quite still in her chair, being inwardly amused that the stiff position the metal bands were holding her in wasn't all that far removed from the manner in which she normally enjoyed sitting down for a makeover.

She opened her eyes lazily as a young woman finished straightening her lashes and listened as her breath caught in her throat. Azula held back the urge to smile until another girl had finished painting her lips in her preferred shade of light-red.

The girl stood perfectly still, looking blankly into Azula's eyes for several seconds before finally managing to regain her composure enough to speak. "Is... is everything to your liking, ma'am?"

Azula cast her golden eyes towards the mirror situated across from her seat, carefully looking for anything out of place- and then turned back and spoke lightly and clearly, almost like she was praising a child who had answered a question correctly. "Yes, thank you, it's all perfect."

The girl sighed in relief, closed her eyes and began to stand straight-

"But..." The girl's eyes remained shut. She stood paralyzed for several seconds before she managed to lift her head and wrench them open in terror.

"These are the same clothes I was wearing in prison, aren't they? I think I'd prefer something a little bit more fitting for this outing."

The girl blinked several times in shocked relief. "Anything you say, princ-"

"She's _not_ a princess anymore." Katara leaned forward from her place against the wall of the room. Toph straightened slightly, wringing her hands, and Suki's eyes widened. "And that prison uniform is just about the _most_ fitting thing she's ever put on."

Azula's golden eyes scanned the room, moving past Katara without a reaction, and settled on the crowd of servant girls in the back of the room. She made a stabbing gesture with her index finger and couldn't help but widen her grin in satisfaction when they squealed and ducked for cover. "Yours will do."

"Ex...Excuse me?" A woman roughly Azula's height soon realized that she was being gestured to by the former princess. She was also starkly aware how quickly the other girls had vanished from her sides. "What... what do you mean?"

Azula let out a small sigh and rolled her eyes at the girl in front of her. "You're roughly the same size as me. You aren't going to a party tonight, and yet you're the one in the dress- while I'm still dressed like a war criminal. And we _are_ supposed to look inconspicuous tonight... aren't we?"

Toph felt Katara's entire body tense for just a second, and straightened up herself. She had really been hoping that Katara wouldn't have noticed the teasing way that Azula had said "we". Azula was still looking at the scared woman directly in front of her, never moving a muscle.

Katara stared at Azula's face for several seconds, her entire body almost shaking with barely concealed outrage. She was fighting with all of her self control not to simply rip some water out of the air and freeze that miserable witch-

"She has a point." Katara's head snapped towards Toph with a look of utter shock, and Toph raised her open palm in Katara's direction while she spoke. "I'm just **saying**, Katara, that since it's a party, she'd probably stand out less the more she was dressed up."

Toph hoped that she could defuse this conversation before anyone started a fight- as much as she'd love the chance to rough up the former princess, Avatar twinkletoes probably wouldn't be happy about them assaulting the prisoner. Even if the prisoner was being a complete bit-

"Well, that's settled, then, right?" Azula craned her head towards the blind earthbender behind her, and looked around the room slowly. Suki was clearly frustrated with Azula's obvious baiting of Katara, but decided that, for now, she had a point; She knew exactly how much those prison clothes could make you stand out in a crowd, and she knew that Aang wanted this to go as smoothly as possible- although for the life of her, she had no idea _why_ he was trying. "...Alright. Fine."

Katara closed her eyes and took several deep breaths, trying to ignore everything swimming in her head right now. Somewhere, she knew that this would actually help Aang's plan. Every other part of her was screaming at the fact that she had ever allowed them to get in this situation. She had only grudgingly agreed to Zuko's suggestion that Aang try to treat Azula in the first place- _this_, she had always been opposed to.

Katara slowly opened her eyes, feeling her muscles relax slightly. She looked at Suki, and then Toph, and then the terrified and confused girl still standing directly in front of Azula's metal seat, and finally at Azula herself. Locking eyes with the former princess for the first time that day, she felt a small chill run up her spine.

"...Fine. Do it." Katara practically spat the words, and then turned on her heel and slammed the door behind her. She hated this- all of it. The war was over, and that was supposed to be the end of all of her worries- No more nightmares about being hunted by the Fire Nation, no more racing against time to beat the comet- it was gone for another 100 years- she should have been happy.

Instead, Aang had spent most of his time attempting to fix problems around the world- Katara enjoyed the chance to reconnect with her family after so much time apart, but she found herself seeing less and less of Aang as his duties as Avatar seemed to overwhelm him.

He buried himself in his work, throwing himself in harms way to stop the riots in the Fire Nation, and the attacks on Fire Nation colonists in the newly liberated Earth Kingdom. Any time when he wasn't putting himself in mortal danger, of course, he was away on diplomatic missions trying to convince everyone that Zuko really was going to try to repair the damage of the last three generations of Fire lords- the Earth Kingdom generals were understandably skeptical.

And now, on top of everything he had already done for them, he was going out of his way to try and rehabilitate the girl who had killed him. Katara wondered if there was any end to the amount of mercy and forgiveness Aang would show these people- and knew that it would probably be the end of him. She shook her head again, storming down the hallway, only partially aware of where she was heading anyways.

Toph sat, feeling Katara headed for the balcony of the building, and decided that the worst part of the night may, in fact, be over. As much as she hated to admit it, she wasn't all that worried about what Azula might try to pull- He was the Avatar, after all. It'd take more than her to put Aang down twice.

In the other room, she sensed Azula changing- and carefully checked her for any signs of attempted escape. Absolutely no changes. The girl who was now wearing Azula's prison outfit ran from the room as soon as she was finished, and proceeded to go straight past Toph, down the stairs below and instead of wasting time, straight out the window at the end of the hall and into the street below, past the Inn where she could feel Aang waiting. Focusing on his high-paced heartbeat, she wondered if she should be just a little worried after all...

Down in the stretch of street separating the two buildings, Aang was desperately trying to calm himself. It didn't help, however, when he was almost knocked down by a distraught girl wearing what appeared to be a set of Fire Nation prison clothes running from the building across the street- or when he looked at the balcony above to see Katara and Suki looking rather upset about something. He could guess what it was. Aang slid himself to a slightly less visible position, hoping to avoid another argument with Katara about this- he understood where she was coming from, of course. If he was wrong, then Azula could escape- and no one knew what she might do if she was loose. There were still soldiers in the Fire Nation who would jump at the chance to replace Zuko and get the war that they had believed in and fought for all their lives started again, and Azula would be the perfect person to rally them to rebellion. A failure here would undoubtedly mean disaster- the only real question was whether it would be personal or global.

But he knew that he wasn't wrong about this. He couldn't explain to Katara or Sokka why they should trust Azula- she was going to have to prove that they could herself. Aang knew that if this went right, maybe everyone would stop thinking of her as just the mad ex-princess of the Fire Nation, who had killed the Avatar and conquered Ba Sing Se in the name of Fire lord Ozai. Aang was almost ashamed to admit that it was how he had seen her for a long time, as well- until he had been shown to her cell for the first time by Zuko, after the comet had come and gone-

Aang's reminiscence was cut short as a loud crashing noise signified the opening of the double doors across the street; Toph had seen fit to block the entrance with a heavy wall of stone when she first arrived, and now the street was laden with the debris. Aang stood up sharply, tightening his belt one more time for good luck, and started across the street.

As Aang reached the doors, dust still clearing, He was met with a solid punch square in his chest. Aang fell backwards mid-step, and quickly waved his arms behind him, catching and swaying himself back to his feet with a light gust of air. Wheezing, Aang coughed out a weak greeting. "Hello to you too, Toph."

"Not bad, Twinkletoes! I was wondering when you'd stop eating the dirt every time you saw me." He grinned widely down at Toph, and was quickly put on the ground by a second punch in the chest. "Still got a lot to learn, though."

Aang glanced up again, rubbing the spot on his chest that he was now sure was going to bruise, and gave her another smile- this time with his eyes open.

The doors swung apart again, and he did his best to make his gulp inaudible when Azula stepped into the open street, a flowing green dress sweeping at her heels.

His first thought was that it was the first time he had ever seen her wearing a dress, which put a quick end to his theory that she must hate wearing girly clothes. His next was that the last time he had seen her wearing green was when she had killed him- Before he could determine which one of those things should have come to mind first, he realized that he needed to at least climb out of the dirt and say something to her before she had a chance to get angry.

Toph noticed it, just as Aang leaped to his feet- a sudden change in Azula's breathing, just for a split second. A hitch in her breath? Her muscles, too- Toph had been convinced this entire time that Azula was as relaxed as she could possibly get, but just now she had, literally, loosened up all over. Just a tiny bit, but it was the first real change Toph had ever felt from her, so she decided to pay especially close attention now.

Azula was looking at Aang like she expected something- with a sort of puzzled and annoyed look that told him he was wasting her time, somehow. "...Well, Avatar?"

Aang brushed himself off a bit, and then looked up at her, beaming. "Well? Let's go! You don't want to miss the fireworks, do you?"

Azula looked down at him for a second, and then off towards the brightly lit streets in the distance, and the sides of her lips curled into her usual imperial smirk. "Of course I don't. Hurry up."

Toph froze in place- was her voice just... playful?!

The Avatar started down the road abruptly, and the former princess followed shortly beside him, leaving the extremely bewildered Earthbender standing in the middle of the street alone. Toph was about as confused as she had ever been without being in the sand. "What ...What in the **Hell** was **That?!**"

Moments later, Sokka snapped her from her daze with a hand on her shoulder, shaking her slightly. Toph grinned widely, noticing that Suki had changed into a tight fitting black uniform and was jumping from rooftop to rooftop, silently trailing the pair. "So, we ARE going to follow them?"

"Oh, definitely- if we don't, Katara is going to flood the whole town." Toph started to laugh loudly- "No, seriously. She found a river running right past this place, and the moon is kinda full tonight. We should probably get started before she thinks we're slacking off."

"...Oh. Yeah, in that case we should get moving."


	3. Festival: 1

Walking along the wide road, Aang couldn't help but notice how beautiful the festivities had gotten since night fell- at dusk, when everyone had started, the sky had been a dull orange- now, however, it was such a deep black that even with the full moon sitting above, all of the thousands of small lanterns strung across the city had to be lit- the light from them so intense that the small back alleys not illuminated by them seemed lost entirely in the stark contrast.

Thick black cords ran along the length of all the homes and buildings, drooping dramatically to just a foot above the average party goers height between each awning and street corner. Along these ropes hung small paper lanterns, each one colored and marked specifically-Blue, Green, Red, and Yellow. Water, Earth, Fire, and Air- the Avatar cycle, in a mystifyingly long chain running from all of the back streets of the city all the way to the large town center, where all the cables connected at a large stone pillar, engraved with an account of the final battle of the war on the day Sozin's comet arrived.

The lanterns had actually been put up at the first celebration of the end of the war- they had never been taken down, however, because the celebrations happened so often lately. There had been a celebration on the day the war ended, and then the day after, and then that weekend; then came the one and two week anniversaries of the end of the war- now was the one month anniversary festival. Aang had begun to think they may be overdoing the whole thing just a little, but it was nice to see the people happy, and no matter how many parties were thrown they showed up in droves to enjoy their newfound peace.

Azula noticed that the Avatar's attention was focused on the almost obscene amount of lanterns scattered about the town- even she had to admit that while excessive, the combination of all the colored lights and the deep and cloudy night had made the town quite breathtaking. Letting her own eyes wander, she quickly began to notice something was odd... but she couldn't place her finger on exactly what-

Aang realized that he had let his mind wander a bit, and snapped from his daze, turning to face the former princess walking steadily to his left, only to find that her eyes were already boring into him even before he began, her lips pursed in such a way that he was sure he had done something wrong.

"...Avatar. The guards- Where are they?" Azula's voice seemed hushed, maybe cautious, but it wasn't a question- it was a demand.

Aang turned around, so that he was walking backwards while facing her. "Well, actually, we decided you didn't need any guards to-"

Azula grabbed the chest of Aang's robes, hoisting him into the air with one hand, glaring into his face for a moment before looking to her sides, eyes darting to every nook and cranny of the town she could see, checking for any signs of movement- the people in the street seemed to not even notice them.

Suki held her breath, laid flat against a rooftop and watching the scene below her- she knew this was a bad idea, she KNEW it. She wished she had some way to contact Sokka from here, but she noticed that the prin- FORMER princess, she corrected herself, remembering Katara's sudden outburst and shuddering- was carefully scanning every bit of the town she could see from her current position. She was going to have to hold still for now, and wait to see how this played out.

Aang's wide smile never left his face- he knew this. She was checking for a reaction- making sure that he wasn't lying to her. One of the first days he had walked into her cell she had done the same thing, although that time had gone a little differently- Toph had kicked the wall open and pinned Azula's hands behind her with the pieces, and she had refused to speak with him for the rest of the day. He had grown to think of it as her way of establishing trust.

"...They really aren't here? Why? What are you trying to pull?!"

Aang smiled down at her face, her lips still pursed tightly together in that angry way that seemed to order him to explain. She looked at him closely for several seconds, before loosening her grip and letting him drop to the ground, landing softly on his feet.

"Like I said- we decided that you should get a chance to-"

"We?" Azula cut Aang off before he could even answer, and he sighed.

"Well, I mean, at this point it's more like 'I'. Zuko still wouldn't even listen to me when I tried to explain-."

"Zuko." The hate in her voice was almost palpable. "Is he still so upset over that little kicking incident? He deserved it."

Aang grinned. "Well, okay, he might have- a little- but you knocked one of his teeth clean out! You wouldn't believe how much extra he has to pay the Royal biographers to paint it back in. He complains every time I visit."

Azula made a small noise that Aang almost thought was laughter. "I was just proving a point." Azula's smirk came back to her, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

Suki was listening intently at this point. She remembered what they were talking about- Zuko had paid his sister a visit in the asylum, to check her progress, and had left bleeding from the mouth and swearing loudly. According to Toph's report, they had begun arguing, and he told her she was lucky that the Avatar had decided not to strip her firebending.

Azula had then revealed she had picked the locks on her shackles several minutes ago, and proceeded to kick Zuko in the face so hard that one of his more noticeable teeth was sent flying out a small window, never to be seen again- which was a shame, because a waterbender probably could have healed it back in. That was why Toph had found and pocketed the tooth herself, considering it payback for... something about her feet that Suki couldn't remember right now.

Still, Suki was surprised at this- Had Zuko really not agreed? Aang hadn't mentioned it to them, so she assumed that he had given in- he was the first to suggest Aang try to help his sister anyways. She shook her head, deciding instead to focus on Azula and Aang, standing in the street below, now continuing their walk. She followed carefully.

Azula listened with a surprising amount of interest as Aang explained the details of his last visit with the new Fire Lord- attempting to explain to him exactly what he was thinking, letting Azula go unsupervised in a large public area. Azula had to admit, she wondered what he was up to as well.

"...And so as soon as he hears me say 'no guards', he gets up and starts to leave the room! I mean, I know that you two don't get along too well-"

"At all."

Aang shook his head. "Alright, at all. Still, he could have at least let me explain."

Azula nodded knowingly. "It's next to impossible to make him see reason."

"Well, He's pretty okay sometimes- I mean, as soon as he saw that old asylum they had you in he ordered them to build a new one- for you! That's pretty nice." Aang looked towards her, smiling, and realized she had stopped moving.

Azula's eyes were open wide, and she was visibly shaking. She couldn't stand thinking about her first few days after the comet came- she couldn't remember much of it anyways, but the little she did was a nightmare. She was too disgusted, and ashamed to even think about what she must have been like-

Aang stared in wide eyed horror at the quaking girl in front of him- how could he have been stupid enough to bring that up? It wasn't the first time he had made the mistake of mentioning this to her, of course- and he noted a marked improvement in her reaction- but he was still racked with guilt. He was at a loss for words... what should he do? He had to calm her down, take her mind off of it- Who would know what to do about something like this? How could he distract her? What would Sokka do at a time like this? Aang's mouth found itself moving faster than his head. "...You know, that dress really brings out your eyes!"

Above, there was a loud crashing noise as Suki lost her balance and toppled backwards, sliding down a rooftop and landing on a sizable cabbage cart in the next street over- though the resulting ruckus and belated screams of a merchant were completely lost on the pair at this point.

Azula's head snapped towards Aang so fast that it hurt, and her eyes narrowed. "...WHAT?"

Aang stood, dumbfounded for several seconds- of all the people he could have thought back to for advice, why Sokka?! He started talking as fast as possible, attempting to explain himself. "...Well, you know, it's just, Sokka always says you should compliment girls when they get dressed up! And, and I realized I hadn't yet, and, so... I did?" Aang pretended not to notice how badly that came out.

For several seconds the two stood still, staring at each other, Aang's sheepish and almost apologetic grin against Azula's not-quite horrified look of confusion. Finally, Azula straightened herself slowly, coughing into her hand and looking away. "Sokka... that water tribe boy told you that? I guess he is smarter than he looks... But it's insulting to call that a compliment- far too overused." Her smile crept back to her lips again as she looked towards Aang. "In fact, just for that, I expect to get two more compliments out of you tonight. Good ones this time. Or I'm escaping."

Aang stood still for several seconds, his playful grin still plastered across his face, before he processed what had just happened. "...Wait, what?!"

Azula flicked one of her bangs and grinned sadistically towards him. "You're the Avatar, right? I'm sure you're up to it."

A nearby man in an avatar costume walked up and patted the paralyzed Aang on the shoulder comfortingly. "Ouch. Good luck with that one, buddy." Aang felt his eye twitch.

At this point, Toph really, really wanted to get close enough to hear what was being discussed. She had felt Azula's heart rate and breathing go totally off the charts for several seconds, and she had stopped moving- and then, Aang had said something, and it was like the both of them had been hit in the chest- not to mention Suki falling off a building. Azula had recovered for the most part seconds later, but Aang seemed one good scare away from a panic attack. Dragging Sokka behind her and ignoring his complaints, she sped up- there was no way she wasn't going to find out what this was all about.

Azula walked briskly past Aang, plainly enjoying the look of embarrassed shock on his face. After walking for several moments, she turned to make sure he was coming along, only to see that he was still frozen in place almost an entire block away. She put her face in her hand, sighing, and barked a short order. "**Avatar.**"

Aang quickly turned, realizing he couldn't see where Azula had yelled from- mainly due to the fact that there was now a large crowd of people between the two. Everywhere Aang attempted to move, he ended up running into someone else and jostled around- completely losing his sense of direction after just a few seconds. Finally fed up, he shoved his way past several large and overly-rowdy celebrators, and found himself in the center of the town- how had he gotten here so fast?! He ran one hand over the arrow on his head- he was definitely leaving this out of the story when he got back.

Sokka was near the point of ripping out his own hair at this point, glaring at the tiny blind earthbending master in front of him. "...They're _**separated**_?! Why? What happened?! Good job, team- This is exactly the sort of thing we're supposed to be preventing!"

Toph shrugged, indifferently. "It looks like Twinkletoes just got lost in a crowd or something- but Zula's staying put over on that side road for now. He'll probably find her again soon." Sokka stared frustrated into the festival in the distance. This was going to be a disaster- _Why_ did no one ever listen to him?!


	4. Alternate ending 1: You're Not Here

Pointing this out quickly- This is an alternate, earlier, and much more depressing ending I had to write out after being inspired by an anonymous writer over on /a/- Thanks for that, whoever that was. The actual story continues in Chapter 4.

--

Azula, in fact, had no idea where Aang had ended up- but, they were separated. For a moment, she considered what he had said to her earlier- there weren't any guards. She could leave any time she wanted and they couldn't catch her... but she had thought about this before. There was no point to escaping- the war was over. There was no way around that- the comet wouldn't arrive for another 100 years, and her brother was in control of the Fire Nation- there wasn't any point to it anymore... as a matter of fact, she didn't have much of a reason to do anything anymore. Why was she even bothering to- she quickly shook her head- she'd had enough of that kind of thinking back in the asylum.

She couldn't remember much of those first days- she thought she had visitors, but she didn't know- maybe they were just hallucinations. Like her mother. For instance, she thought she lashed out at Ty Lee at least once, clawing her throat, burning her, but that made no sense- Ty Lee wouldn't be wearing that stupid Kiyoshi outfit anymore. One of her more obvious bad dreams.

The next days were much clearer- she remembered waking up somewhere new- the walls were all white, pristine metal, and there were windows with bars for the light to come through. She loved it and hated it at the same time- all her meals were brought to her, and she was provided for in every way, but there weren't any visitors for quite some time.

She had discovered that the blind Earthbending girl- called Toph, she had learned- was actually in charge of transporting her around the facility whenever she had to be moved securely- and that she was charging Zuzu an amazing amount of money for the services. She had heard her say something about payback for her feet, and decided she didn't really want to ask about it.

Of course, Zuko had tried to visit once or twice, always taking care to remove his official robes and crown before stepping in, afraid to upset her further- as if that was possible. The visits were always short, and invariably ended with Zuko being insulted or upset and leaving in a rage. She enjoyed that, really. He deserved it. A smile played across her lips.

And then Zuzu had somehow coaxed the Avatar into visiting her, to see if she could be 'treated'... she didn't like the way he had put that. At first, she had simply stayed silent when he visited her- he never really said anything worth responding to. Except, one time, when he said he was just there to see if he could help her- she remembered laughing so hard that she almost cried. He and the nurses seemed to remember it being the other way around, but that wasn't her problem.

She still remembered when she first started talking back to him, though- he had come in and sat with her, as usual, talking about nothing she wanted to hear- and then she noticed blood seeping through his robes. She had laughed, asking how the great Avatar had been injured- apparently, there was an attack in the Earth Kingdom against a few colonists they wanted gone, and the people in the town weren't too keen on listening to what he had to say- one of them had gotten lucky and left a decent gash in his arm before he contained them all.

She remembered being amazed that someone could be injured so badly by a simple rock after taking her lightning to the back and surviving- and he had laughed politely and informed her that he hadn't survived it. That was interesting enough to get her asking questions, of course, and eventually she had found that she was answering all of his questions to her simply to get more information out of him. She found his company quite enjoyable when he wasn't preaching about the joys of peace and harmony, she thought- but maybe that was just of her desperate lack of company lowering her standards. He was the only one, after all, who had stopped in... but maybe...

"Are... you alright?" Azula snapped out of her reminiscence, looking up from her seat on the ground to see Aang standing over her, with that smile he always used when things were bad and he tried to convince you they were good. She had seen that from him a lot over the last month.

"Of course. Where have you been?" Azula glared up at him, not quite managing to hide the wavering in her eyes and voice that let him know what she was thinking about- she knew he would pretend not to see it anyways.

"I got dragged all the way to the middle of town, actually- The fireworks are going to be starting in a few minutes. You wanted to see them, right?" He stood for a second, unsure, and then offered his hand.

She sat for a moment or two, trying to decide how to do it- finally, her hand shot up and grabbed his, firmly yanking him down to the ground next to her. "We can still see them from here." Aang indeed pretended not to notice the half-sob in her throat.

The fireworks had started several minutes ago, and Aang hadn't really noticed them. The girl sitting in the dirt next to him cried with her face buried into her knees, and he laid his hand gently on her back. He felt her jump, and she held very still for several seconds- she lifted her head, slightly, and looked down at his hand. "This... this is nice, isn't it?"

Aang held still for a few seconds, trying to think to himself about exactly what he should say, looking at her, and found himself talking before he could consider it. "It's perfect."

She sat still for just a moment, and then rested her head on his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his, nails digging into him as she clutched him to her as tight as she could manage.

Toph sat perfectly still on the next street over, for the first time tonight genuinely at a loss for words- all she could manage being a hushed "Oh."


	5. Festival: 2

Aang was getting extremely tired of being jostled around in the wave of revelers rushing around the central square of the town- already he had been attempting to fight his way through for several minutes, still unable to get his bearings straight- it didn't help that all of the lanterns meeting in one large open area had made the already strong lights almost unbearable.

At last, he shoved his way free, managing to escape into a small alcove between two small buildings- he noticed that all the shops lining the square were still open, which would explain all of the people running about carrying packages on their shoulders, at least- He rubbed a large bruise on his right shoulder from an exceptionally careless party goer who he could only assume had been carrying a sack full of rocks.

He stepped cautiously back into the square and looked around- he couldn't see Azula anywhere nearby. He ran one hand over his head, attempting to figure out how he could find her- he couldn't just fly over the crowd looking, he didn't have his glider with him- and it would most certainly blow his cover even if he did. He closed his eyes and laid back against a wall, sighing- and he realized how simple the answer was.

He grinned, inwardly thanking Toph for having taught him her particular method of seeing via earthbending. He wasn't as good as she was, of course- he knew he'd never manage to duplicate the way she could tell when someone had lied- But he could still find Azula much easier than trying to pick her from the crowds by sight.

Aang made his way quickly across the town center, jumping and dodging between the swarms of citizens partaking in the festival, until he reached the large pillar jutting from the center of the plaza. He placed his hand against the stone, carefully, and closed his eyes, letting the stark images flow into his mind- it was like looking at a series of still pictures, to him- Toph had always described it with far smoother motion, much closer to eyesight. Aang decided he'd have to practice it more often- he didn't need her finding out he was slacking off.

Toph had long ago discovered that she could tell when Aang was making use of her patented earthbending sense- he was sloppy, she knew, but he was good enough that it had saved him from some nasty scrapes before. There was a problem, though- Suki couldn't tell what he was doing. She was still sitting on a rooftop, far enough from Aang that he couldn't see her- but he would definitely notice her this way. Toph placed her hands on her hips, frustrated- so much for stealth.

Suki was confused when she saw Aang standing still in the middle of the town square- he had just been looking for Azula- why would he just be sitting there? She sat for a moment, crouching against the rooftop, and attempting to get a better look at him, when suddenly he looked directly at her, a shocked expression on his face. She quickly ducked behind the roof, sliding down the slanted side and leaping to the next building over- it was dark enough, and her outfit sleek enough, that her motion was mostly hidden. He had seen her, but he couldn't tell where she was right now, at least. She wasn't looking forward to the talk she'd be getting from him later. She sighed, crossing her arms, and made her way up the side of the new building- there was some sort of commotion down there, and she needed a better look.

Azula stormed through the crowds in the plaza, her golden eyes scanning everyone in her way quickly- too tall, too skinny, too short, that one had hair, blue eyes, a woman, too tall again- frustrated, she began shoving her way through them, giving them only the briefest of glances before knocking them aside with one arm. It was his fault they were separated now- Was he even _looking_ for her? She was going to make him _**pay**_ for this-

She saw him suddenly, standing at the large stone tablet in the center of the town, staring at the rooftops nearby- she watched his gaze for several seconds, distracted- and then shook her head. If he was watching the stars, he certainly hadn't been looking for _her_. She stormed forward, knocking several more people out of her way as she went- the crowd decided to give her a wide berth, parting in front of her as she strode towards him, her pursed, angry expression slowly becoming her usual smirk as she closed the gap.

Toph could feel Aang searching for Suki, of course, and had managed to signal her to get out of the area for now- granted, a pebble to the head wasn't the best way to deliver a message, but it was the best she could manage on such short notice. She turned her attention back to the square, and froze- Azula was heading for Aang quickly, her arm raised, fingers clenched, and he didn't notice- his back was still turned, he must be looking for Suki- Toph reacted on instinct, quickly twisting her foot against the stone street under her.

"**Avatar**!" Aang couldn't mistake that voice- he turned sharply, just in time for Azula's right hand to reach out and grasp the front of his robes- and to see her eyes go wide as she lost her footing and began to fall. She was confused- she had been just a step away from Aang, about to reach out and thoroughly demean him in front of a large crowd of people for having made her search for him- and then it seemed like her dress had been twisted around her legs in mid-step. She cursed her carelessness and found she had little time to do much but close her eyes and wait for the impact.

Suki watched as Azula closed in on Aang with her breath held- Azula's hand shot out, latching onto the front of his robes, and then the ground around her seemed to twist under her foot as she took her next step, sending her spiraling as she fell, her long green dress swirling through the air behind her. Aang instinctively shot both hands out to catch the taller girl, obviously underestimating the force with which she fell- as she landed against his arms he was forced down onto one knee. Of course, since Azula still had a firm grip on the chest of Aang's robes, her fall ended with his upper body jerked down over hers, their faces only inches apart, both of them with their eyes clenched shut.

All in all, it was possibly the most stylish and dramatic catch the crowd had ever seen- which explained the massive eruption of cheers and whistles from the gathering onlookers. Suki stared for several seconds at the scene in the plaza, before shoving her hands over her own mouth to stifle her laughter, and making her way to the other side of the roof- now that she knew Toph was watching them, she HAD to get back and tell Sokka about this.

Aang crouched on one knee for several seconds, straining under Azula's weight- he had never realized just how much taller than him she was. He slowly opened his eyes, realizing with relief that he had managed to catch her, at least- and found himself staring directly into her own wide, golden eyes, her lips pursed in that same way they had been before- the one that demanded an explanation.

He stared dumbstruck for several moments, and realized he could feel her breath on his face- like steam, he thought- and then he noticed exactly how close they were. He grinned sheepishly, attempting to pull himself away- only for her to pull him back down, still glaring angrily.

At this point, the entire crowd stopped their whistling and cheering, leaning in closely. One of the men in the front row immediately looked at the man next to him. "Oh, he's good." The other man nodded Knowledgeably.

"...Avatar." Aang gulped- that was more of a growl than a word, he thought worriedly. "You know... you look a lot lighter than you actually are." He really hoped that sounded as good out loud as it had in his head, but he was too busy being terrified to hear.

The crowd immediately drew back away from the pair, a collective "Ooooh..." running through them. The same man from earlier looked at his friend and shook his head mournfully.

Azula glared straight into his eyes, that same hopeful smile plastered across his face. "...Tell me that isn't supposed to be one of your compliments."

"I-"

"If you say it is, then you owe me four." Azula's smile came back as she heard an audible gulp.

"I... You know- as far as falling goes, that was really... graceful?" He tried to pretend he wasn't sweating bullets- her breath wasn't helping the fact that he was already nervous- it really was like steam, he thought, and tried not to shudder.

Azula mulled his words over for several moments longer than necessary, enjoying the look of poorly concealed despair on his face. "...Alright. Passable, at best, but it'll do." Her smirk widened. "Not a bad catch either, Avatar." She tightened her grasp on his robes, pulling herself up and shoving him down into the dirt as she rose to her feet. "One to go, then."

Aang smiled up at her, relieved, and moved to pull himself out of the street- her hand shot down, grabbing him by the arm and jerking him to his feet suddenly. "You're not allowed out of my sight again." Aang looked at her as if to protest- "It's your fault we got separated in the first place- you're too slow- And then I had to come all the way here and find **you** because you were busy stargazing."

Aang looked at the ground for a moment, finding himself actually ashamed- she had a point.

She looked away from him to hide her smile. "If we were back home, I'd have you on a _leash_ by now, Avatar."

Were it not for the symphony of whistles and cheers from the crowd still gathered around, they could have heard the crash as Suki missed another jump and sailed into the side of a building, her face bright red with embarrassment.

Aang turned chalk white at the last statement, looking towards her only to see her scouring the plaza with her eyes. She suddenly looked back to him, her smile replaced with that time-wasting look from before. "...Well?" She sounded insulted, and Aang realized the problem- he should have noticed it in her voice before.

"...I'm sorry. I really was looking for you, something just distracted me-"

Azula's voice cut him off sharply. "You can make it up to me. I want a new dress."

Aang looked at her again, worried now "But, why? I mean-"

"Oh, this one is fine, of course- if you want me to break my _neck_." She jabbed her finger at the way it swept the ground behind her to emphasize her point. "The shops around here are all still open- I need a new dress, and you're going to get me one."

He ran a hand over his bruised shoulder again, attempting to sound as sympathetic as possible. "I really don't think that I brought enough money with me for something like-"

Azula was suddenly leaning down at eye level to him, staring him in the face. "You're the Avatar- you'll come up with something." The heat from her breath was stinging now, and he tried not to wince. Her smile widened even further, and her voice lost it's severity, becoming almost playful. "And if you don't, I'm sure that I can."

Toph held in a chuckle at this- she didn't think it was possible for Twinkletoes to GET any more nervous- but now his heart was running almost as fast as Momo's. That was probably bad for him, she thought, and then had to laugh to herself again as Azula turned and grabbed Aang by the shoulder, steering him across the plaza ahead of her.

Sokka glowered at her. "You know, I'm glad you have so much fun seeing Aang struggling for his life out there."

"Oh, lighten up- he seems to be handling himself pretty well so far- he's not too bad handling her, either." She snickered to herself as Sokka shot her a horrified look- he realized after a moment it was a lost cause and turned his attention back to the pair. She had one hand on his shoulder, walking just behind him and to the left, and seemed to almost be using him as a shield to keep the crowd from touching her. He winced to himself as she deflected several children running by with Aang, who doubled over at being rammed.

"Oh yeah, laugh it up- and as soon as you're too busy giggling to yourself to stop her she's going to turn around and start blasting everyone who looks at her funny!"

"Well, then I'm not too worried about it." Sokka clenched his teeth- how did he keep walking into those?

"Ha. Ha. I'm serious here- we need to keep an eye on her or someone is going to get hurt. They probably will anyways..." Toph noticed the change in his voice- he really was getting upset. Toph sighed, noticing that Suki had gotten back down to street level about a block away- she wanted to ask to her about some things. "Well, then you keep an eye on her- I'm going to go talk to Suki."

Sokka spun quickly around. "Suki?! Why would-" Toph was already gone. He sighed, running one hand through his hair. "HOW am I the ONLY ONE taking this seriously?!" He turned back to the square and looked at... looked at... okay- So he had no idea where Aang and Azula were anymore. "...Perfect. This is the best covert mission _**ever**_."

Aang gulped as he took careful aim- Azula had, of course, come up with a plan to finance her new dress faster than he had. Thinking back on it, she probably had this planned from before she even tripped-

"Focus!" Her voice pierced his ears, snapping him back to the task at hand- an Earthbending marksmanship contest. He looked to the sidelines, seeing her glaring directly at him, eyes blazing- no pressure.

He stepped back carefully, eying the target in the distance- a large flaming boulder being tossed between two burly earthbenders, meant to represent Sozin's comet. He bent his knees, turning himself slightly- he hated moving targets- and he had just one shot to do this, seeing as Azula had insisted he miss the first two.

Azula watched from the sidelines as Aang quickly stomped his left foot, a stone about the size of his head launching up to eye-level. He spun on his heel, catching the boulder with his left hand and launching it as he came back around, leaving his arm outstretched as it hurtled through the air. Everyone's eyes were locked on the small missile as it raced towards it's target- except for Azula.

She was the only one watching as just before impact, Aang clenched his left hand into a fist and quickly opened it again- his tiny projectile overhead exploding and sending several hundred rocks fragments whizzing through the larger one in every direction. There was a crushing noise as the 'comet' exploded into a cloud of rubble, and Azula's smile widened as she clapped slowly along with the rest of the crowd. Aang's eyes darted around over the crowd, and met hers for a moment, and he grinned widely at her before going to collect his reward from the man running the contest.

Azula watched as he quickly made his way back across the small plaza, leaving the organizer of the target-shoot rather flustered. She had gotten what she wanted out of this little exercise- She quickly shot her hand out and snatched Aang with one hand again, her nails digging into the same almost-but-not-quite cuts in his shoulder that they always did, and she wondered exactly how long those red marks were going to stay visible.

She waited until they were a safe distance away from the crowds before she tightened her grip on his shoulder, making him look at her directly- Aang was surprised to see that she was smiling. "Nice shot."

Aang smiled, relieved, and her grip on his shoulder loosened. "I still think we should have been a little more discreet."

She scoffed. "Trust me, no one is going to believe you're the Avatar after that performance."

"But I still won first place!" Aang looked almost indignant.

"Barely- if you were really the Avatar you never would have missed- and you certainly wouldn't have missed on purpose to mislead these people. At the worst, they think you're a talented jerk, and at best they think you got lucky."

"Well... I guess that's sort of like a good thing. So, do you think we have enough to pay for your dress yet?" Aang tried to sound as hopeful as possible, already knowing the answer from the smirk spreading across her lips.

The next few hours passed in a complete blur- Azula would find some new game going on, a race, or another contest of earthbending prowess- and would sit on the sidelines happily watching as Aang proceeded to wipe the floor with everyone in the area until there was no one left to compete, and they'd move on to the next viable target, taking all the prize money with them.

Toph, meanwhile, had just finished getting a full report from Suki on everything that she had seen that night. She knew that something juicy must have been said to get the crowd- and Aang- to give such a spirited reaction, but upon hearing Azula's leash remark even she had gone red in the face and proceeded to roll about the street laughing at Aang's expense. Suki had likewise been excited to know about Aang and Azula's less visible reactions to everything that had happened.

For now, though, the two of them were watching their reign of terror over the games of the festival- the two had probably made enough money off of the citizens to buy out half of the shops that were open by now, actually. Toph laughed to herself again. Aang had, at this point, completely given up on his policy of being discreet- he was just enjoying winning, and being a complete showoff while he was at it- and Azula's mechanical heart rate had almost begun acting normal. Toph noted with interest exactly how much fun she was having watching the citizens get crushed in their own games- and she shuddered when she realized that she had actually lived to see Azula having fun.

Sokka had taken the time to catch up with the two of them, of course- he had nothing better to do since he lost track of them. Scaling the rooftop to reach the two, he noticed them laughing about... something. He made an odd growling noise in the back of his throat as he quickly scrambled onto the rooftop. "Alright, that's it! I'm the team leader here- I'm supposed to be in the loop! I demand to know what's so funny!"

Suki turned, smiling. "Oh, there you are, Sokka-" she hopped towards Sokka, snatching his hand. "Get over here and stay down, you HAVE to see this." Sokka became noticeably more worried as she dragged him towards the town square- what was that commotion he was hearing? He recognized the voice-

"A-Aang! Get his knee! The RIGHT Knee!" Sokka's eyes widened- What was she making him DO?! Sokka heard a yell of excruciating agony, followed by a meaty thud, and threw himself down at the edge of the rooftop, peeking over carefully.

His eyes popped open- Aang was standing in a large ring in the plaza, apparently set up for some sort of miniature tournament- and judging from the large pile of men either unconscious or in pain, he had won quite handily. Sokka was almost relieved- but why would Aang be FIGHTING at a PARTY? Then, he saw Aang reach over and snatch a large sack of money from the tournament organizer and make his way at a running pace to the sidelines where Azula stood with her hands on her hips, a wide smile on her face.

Sokka watched as Aang skidded to a stop in front of Azula and the two high-fived and began simply laughing, him doubling over and her with one hand raised and covering her mouth as she tossed her head back. He stood back up straight, wiping his eye with the side of his hand, and gave her the sack of prize money, which she weighed in one hand before simply dropping it into an even larger bag of money at her side. She hoisted it up with one hand before passing it to Aang, who seemed to have a slight amount of trouble balancing with it- she then stuck her hand back on his shoulder and proceeded to steer him into the crowds, vanishing from Sokka's sight. He sat still for several moments, horrified- and then realized that Toph and Suki were both in hysterics looking at him.

"...OKAY, that's it! You two, right now- WHAT is going ON here?!" Suki wiped a tear from her eye with the side of her hand as she calmed herself, and looked Sokka in the eyes- he was totally confused by this. She sighed. "Sokka, look- Toph can probably explain it better than I can."

Toph kicked a rock at Suki's head, which she dodged, smiling playfully. "Alright, fine."

She cleared her throat loudly. "Long story short, Twinkletoes and 'Zula are hitting it off like there's no tomorrow."

Sokka looked at her for a moment, eyebrow raised. "Well, I mean, obviously- he's been treating her for a month, they'd HAVE to get along-"

Toph interrupted, attempting to hold in a laugh. "No, Sokka, not just getting along- we're witnessing the birth of the most hilariously unlikely relationship in HISTORY- and they're both so dense that they haven't even noticed!"

Sokka's eyebrow seemed to arch even higher, and then he began to laugh uncontrollably, slapping one hand against his knee as tears welled in his eyes. "Oh, that's- Okay, which one of you came up with that? That's- oh, man. I almost thought you were SERIOUS!"

Toph and Suki looked at each other and shared an exasperated sigh, and Toph turned her attention back to finding the pair- she wasn't going to let him distract her from something this juicy- and potentially disastrous.

She found them about 20 minutes later, during which time Suki had been trying to explain to Sokka that they were, indeed, telling the truth- he was still convinced it was all the best joke ever conceived. They had been in a building at the end of the plaza that she could only assume had wooden floors, and were now seated at a small stone table outside a restaurant only a short distance away. She noticed that in the time since she had lost track of them, Aang had grown considerably more relaxed- when they were tearing up the town, he had spent the whole time in a state of constant excitement- now he was more subdued. Azula, on the other hand, was absolutely thrilled about something, judging from the way she couldn't stop laughing every time she looked in his direction.

Aang sat at the table chuckling to himself, attempting to catch his breath long enough to talk. "_**How**_ did I _lose_?"

Azula placed her hand over her mouth, holding back another outburst of laughter. "Well, you heard the judge- you didn't even bother getting a glider to go with your costume! Completely amateur." She broke out laughing again, doubling over the table with tears in her eyes.

Aang smiled despite himself, glaring across the table with as much ferocity as he could muster, grinning from ear to ear. "That one really is your fault, you know- I left it behind to make you feel more comfortable!"

"Oh, yes, of course, lay all the blame on the war criminal- I certainly didn't see _that_ coming." She tried to wipe her eyes as much as possible without smearing her makeup. She smiled as wide as she could remember in years. "And don't forget your _scar_."

Aang burst out laughing at the thought of it. "Oh, of course- I went **way** overboard with it. This one looks way too disfiguring- no one would ever think it was **real**." He cleared his throat, attempting his best impression of the judges' voice. "**Real** scars make you look dashing, and handsome!" They both managed to stay perfectly quiet for several seconds before losing it completely, breaking into choking fits of laughter yet again.

A bouncy girl pouring tea at the table next to them turned her head suddenly. "You know, that's not entirely untrue- I mean, some of them can be bad, but I knew at least one person with a pretty bad scar that was actually really... um. Never mind." She noticed the way both of them were staring at her, and quickly made her way to the next table.

A crack in the sky signified the start of the fireworks, at last. Azula and Aang both looked upwards, suddenly, watching the display in silence for several minutes. Aang looked across the table at Azula, noticing her gaze was light and unfocused, her eyes and smile wide as she watched the streams of sparks launching through the night sky. He grinned again, leaning back and watching her simply sit and enjoy herself for what he imagined must have been the first time in far too long.

Sokka laid on his back, lazily watching the fireworks rocketing across the black sky. Suki and Toph sat on the edge of the building, relaxing, and watching something entirely different. Sokka looked over at them, wondering if they were still going on about all the same nonsense as they had been before- "They sure are putting on a show tonight, aren't they, Suki?"

Toph grinned, and Suki held in a laugh. "Oh, you have _no_ idea." Sokka sighed and closed his eyes, preparing to get a quick nap- those two were absolutely nuts, he mused.


	6. Festival: 3

Update- After reading over it again this morning, I went through and made it much more readable. No drastic changes, but the grammar and wording in general has been retooled a bit.

--

Aang was trying to ignore the shaking in his legs, and the deep nervous feeling in his gut- he shouldn't be so afraid- it was just a dress shop. A small one, even- not extremely impressive. It was just... well, over the last month he'd gotten a bit more sensitive towards this kind of thing. He shook his head, trying not to think about it. He took a deep breath, and stepped towards the door, reaching out to grip it, and then pulled his hand away- he really, really didn't want to do this.

He felt a hand on his shoulder- the nails bit into him again, and he winced, wondering how she always managed to grab the exact same spot every single time- but he found himself surprisingly relieved. Looking at Azula, as amazing as it was, he found that he was actually extremely glad that she was there.

He turned again, facing the door. He closed his eyes, breathing heavily again, and pulled the door open. He stood still for a moment, noticing silence- he looked around the room and saw several women standing about- and then realized that all the eyes in the room were focused on him. He gulped, turning pale- he had to get out of here. He could just turn around and pretend he'd walked into the wrong store, right? Azula's grip tightened on his shoulder, and looked towards her, amazed to see her still smiling at him gently- almost reassuringly. He grinned, suddenly feeling like it wouldn't be so bad-

Azula gave him a rough shove, watching as he stumbled to the center of the room and spun around to face her, eyes wide and horrified- she smiled back as widely as she could, and made a half-hearted attempt to sound innocent. "Make sure you pick a good one for me!"

Aang stood in shock, his legs refusing to move. "Y...You can't-"

"Oh, you'll be fine." Her voice deepened again, and she gave everyone in the room a quick glare. "No one helps him." She took a step back, taking in the look of complete shock on his face just before the doors slammed shut. She had almost expected a scream.

Suki watched from overhead, cringing as the doors slammed. "Oh, ouch. How's he doing in there?"

Toph held a hand up, signaling her to be silent- she was much more interested in Azula for now. Her heart rate and breathing were back to their usual immaculate pace- she sighed, disappointed- that little window into her head was closed. She quickly shifted her attention to Aang, finding him still numb with disbelief. "Twinkletoes'll be fine. Well, if he doesn't faint."

Aang stood staring at the door for a moment, head still reeling- she couldn't honestly expect him to be able to find a dress for her! He ran one hand over the arrow on his head, frustrated. Suddenly having remembered he was still in a room full of people, he turned, and found that he remained the center of attention- several women had surrounded him while he wasn't looking. "...Ah, he-hello?"

The ladies all exchanged brief conspiratory glances and nodded before dragging him away, clamoring on about what color would look best on 'that slender, cranky girl who threw you in here'.

Azula stood outside, smirking- she couldn't help but imagine him running around inside the cramped little store, awkwardly attempting to size up a dress for her, his face turning bright red in that odd way that it always did when he was embarrassed. She held a hand up to her mouth, trying to hold in a laugh and failing.

She couldn't help but wonder if that was really a smart move, though. He might think she was planning to escape- she shook her head. He knew she didn't have any reason to run. Well, he might not get a dress that she actually liked- but she didn't really care what she wore, as long as it was a bit shorter than the emerald death trap wrapped around her now.

Sighing, she placed herself slowly on a small stone bench and turned to face the store- really, she had just been looking for a moment to herself. There were things to think about- mainly involving the way she _couldn't_ think whenever _he_ was around. She couldn't help but laugh at herself then, realizing how ridiculous it sounded, even in her own mind. She couldn't think of exactly when it had first started- it must have been sometime during therapy, though, and she had to hold in another laugh. Therapy was supposed to make you less confused, wasn't it? She could remember, at least, the first time she had acknowledged what she was thinking.

He'd come to visit her earlier than usual, just about a two weeks ago, and found her choking down her lunch for the day. He immediately demanded to know what they were feeding her, completely outraged- she'd replied that it was elephant koi, a perfectly normal meal. He'd stared at her, confused, and then realized what was wrong- she was burning each bite to little more than ash before she ate it, like she did with every meal in the asylum. The look of horror on his face as he realized she did this each day had actually shocked her into laughing.

He'd demanded to know why she would do something like that to herself- she had told him that she wasn't stupid enough to eat just anything that slid through the door into her cell without precautions. They'd argued for a while- he'd said Zuko would never do such a thing, and she'd said she wasn't going to take a chance on her brother's mercy. Thinking back on it later, she would realize that the look on his face had been sadness.

Then, he'd grabbed her plate himself and jammed a hunk of fish into his mouth- it took her a moment to remember all the times he'd harped on and on about the Air Nomads being vegetarians- to them, it was a sacred rule. As soon as it clicked in her head, she was filled with an unbelievable rage and indignation, although she hadn't realized why just yet. She had jumped towards him and slammed her fist into his jaw, knocking him to the ground and sending that bit of meat bounding into the corner. She was shaking with anger as he picked himself up and stared at her, shocked, and the guards rushed in to put her back in shackles.

Ever since, he had arrived on time to see her eat every meal. She ate them quietly and without complaint, never mentioning that incident- and he never brought it up again either. She'd spent the next few days almost hoping that her brother really had poisoned her meals, if only so she wouldn't have to deal with the unbearable crushing feeling of shame every time Aang smiled at her. She'd realized why she had snapped, by then, and that just made it even worse. The idea that he was going to break that vow had filled her head with one thought- that she wasn't **worth** it. She dragged one of her fingernails across her temple, leaving a thin red mark- she really _had_ gone crazy, hadn't she?

She leaned back on the bench, rubbing at the corner of her eye- she hated reminiscing, especially when it started to get sentimental. She grinned widely- she could always be superficial about it. She was still amazed at what a little firebending training had done for his figure, after all, and she could do worse for herself than the _Avatar_... Not to mention, at the very least, she could ruffle _Katara's_ feathers a bit, and she was always up for that.

At a river just a small distance from the large entrance gates to the town, Katara took another swing, panting heavily at this point, and the tree in front of her buckled as shards of ice crashed through it, spearing it to the ground in a variety of angles. Breathing out, relaxing her arms, the ice melted slowly away into the ground. She sat in the grass, laying back, catching her breath- she needed a chance to think, anyways- why was she so on edge lately? **Azula**. She took all of a few seconds to decide on that answer.

How could Aang spend so much time treating her, on top of all of his duties as the Avatar- exactly what time did he ever take for himself? She could tell he wasn't alright- the lines under his eyes stood out harshly against his skin. He had been so distant lately- she rarely got to see him, and when they did meet, they never talked very much- he'd tell her about the various things he'd done, and get caught up on how everyone was doing, and then he'd be off to take care of some other emergency.

The last time she had actually gotten to talk to him was just yesterday... she had been trying to convince him not to go on _this_ trip with Azula, not to trust her. She scoffed- _that_ went well. She'd been so frustrated arguing with him that she hadn't mentioned them to him at the time- the new scar on his arm, and one on his chest. They were light, they'd fade with time- but she could have healed them. If he just would have come to see her, instead of running off and doing whatever it was that he did to himself, she could have healed _him_, and he'd be fine, and things could just...

She clenched her eyes, frustrated and on the verge of tears. She swung her hands up, and the river raged, water flipping into the air wildly and smashing the already beaten and destroyed tree into nothing more than splinters, and then dragging the remains down into the current. Katara hated herself for thinking it, but she really wished things would go back to the way they had been before the end of the war.

Aang stumbled out of the clothing store with a large dress neatly folded in his arms, face still pale, and Azula snapped her head towards him, a wide grin quickly spreading across her lips. "You didn't have any trouble, did you?"

He looked up, startled to see her waiting. "N-no, I don't think so." Sighing, he held the dress towards her and closed his eyes, waiting for her judgment. Her footsteps were deafening as she padded towards him slowly, and then she reached out and snatched it from his hands.

She stretched her arm out in front of her, letting the dress unravel and spread- it was a long, gold and white dress, sleeveless and made of some kind of silk, with red flowers spreading across it in an overly-intricate pattern that she wasn't all that fond of. She looked out from behind it slowly, a frown on her face- and saw Aang step aside, revealing several more bags. She arched an eyebrow, slowly.

Aang grinned, scratching the back of his head with one hand. "I thought it might be for the best if you had a selection."

Azula smiled widely. "Oooh, You're _learning_. Alright, bring those with you." She turned on her heel, and began walking briskly towards the dark and foreboding town gate in the distance, out of the reach of the lanterns that were burning and gently turning in the breeze overhead.

Aang stood still for several moments, and then scooped all the bags and the gold dress up unceremoniously, trying to chase after her. "...Wait, where are we going?!"

She flicked one of her bangs with her fingers, and answered him without turning around or stopping. "I'm going to try them on, of course- and there's a nice secluded spot right over there." Behind her, Aang turned an amazingly noticeable shade of red.

He looked desperately back towards the store as much as he could manage without tripping. "But, they have dressing rooms right there in the-"

"Too crowded. Hurry up, you're falling behind again." Aang tried not to slip, balancing the bags as best he could and running to catch the former princess, trying to ignore the stinging heat in his face.

Suki landed softly in the grass and noticed it was wet- she let Toph gently off of her shoulders, and Toph immediately grabbed her by the arm, motioning her closer. She bent down close to the small girl's face and whispered lightly. "Katara?"

Toph crossed her arms, frustrated. "Yeah, she's here, all right. This is going to get messy." Nothing was going her way tonight. She cleared her throat and put both hands against her mouth, breathing in heavily. "_**Katara!**_"

Immediately, Katara bolted from the grass and spun around, a massive portion of the river following her movements and blocking the moon from view. She stared at the two figures in the distance for several seconds before realizing who it was- she relaxed, the water over her raining down gently over her shoulders.

Suki came nearer to her now, looking over her closely- even in the dark it was obvious there was something wrong. She looked down at Toph, and wondered to herself if this plan of hers was really a good idea-

"How are things go- wait... Where's Sokka?" Katara's eyes darted forth between them, and then turned to the entrance to the city, scanning every face in the distance as best she could.

Suki stepped towards her, putting a hand on her shoulder gently. "He decided to stay behind for a little while- watch them while they were on their way here."

Katara glared at her. "They're on their way _here_?"

Toph stepped between them, attempting to look casual. "Don't worry about it- 'Zula's been pretty normal so far."

Katara stared down at her coldly. "Hah. Is that supposed to be a good thing?"

Suki chimed in, noticing that Katara was getting a little bit angry now, and hoping she could calm her a bit- maybe it would make what was coming easier. "Well, she hasn't tried to escape at all, yet- and she's had chances."

Katara stared at the river, her eyes narrowing. "She probably just hasn't seen a chance to destroy the town and escape all at _once_ yet- but don't worry, I'm sure she'll come up with **something.**"

Toph sighed loudly, and then grabbed Katara and Suki and pulled them down to her height. "They're coming- sit here!" She quickly stood and raised both hands, creating a solid boulder of earth between the small group and the large gateway that Aang and Azula were approaching now. The team sat still, Suki and Katara each peeking out from a different side as the pair came around the side of the wall.

Aang was moving ahead of Azula now, keeping his eyes open- he wanted to be absolutely sure no one could see this spot. It was dark enough, at least- but he was still extremely uncomfortable about this. Her nails were digging onto his shoulder again, and he noticed that she had finally broken the skin for sure this time. He sighed, walking to a small, secluded spot where the river and the city wall almost touched- it was far enough away that anyone coming out of the city gates wouldn't see anything but darkness.

He laid the bags down carefully, attempting not to knock any over as he did so, and felt her hand leave his shoulder. He turned to face her and suddenly felt one of her nails digging into the sore spot on his chest- yes, he was sure now, that would be bruising later. "You're going to go stand on the other side of that wall until I'm done, alright?"

Aang nodded, grinning, and quickly started moving away- he could handle that, at least.

Katara tensed as she jabbed him in the chest, and then almost growled when she saw him obey her command almost instantly. "Why is he just leaving her alone out here-"

Toph snickered under her breath. "You want me to call him back so he can watch?"

Katara whipped her head around at Toph, glaring. "You know, you can really-"

Suki reached around, grabbing both of them by the arms, giving Katara a severe glance. "Hey- that's why we're _here_, isn't it? How about we just watch her _closer_, then?" Suki waited for them both to give her a small nod before releasing them. She bit her bottom lip worriedly, looking up at the moon- were they even going to be _able_ to do this?

Azula ruffled through the bags, rolling a small wisp of blue flame between her fingers for light- she was amazed at how bad Aang's taste in clothes was. She didn't mind that first dress too much, of course- but it was a bit gaudy, and she'd like to avoid that if she could. Before long, she had cast nearly all of the bags aside, disappointed- although there was one particular candidate she had set aside.

She sighed, exasperated, and reached into the last of the bags Aang had brought along- and found herself genuinely caught off guard as she drew out a formal male suit. She stared at it for several seconds- it must have been for him, right? She turned it in her hand- no, it was her size. She held her breath for several seconds before she found herself laughing uncontrollably.

Even on the other side of the stone wall, with Azula a good 30 or 40 feet away, he could hear her laughter. He sunk his head into his hands- he **knew** he should have been watching those girls in the store closer! A thought came to him unexpectedly- he still needed another compliment tonight. He slapped his hands together- perfect! He just had to say she had a nice laugh. He smiled widely- finally, something was looking up!

Looking up- that reminded him. _Suki_. He didn't mind that she was following him, actually- after thinking about it, he'd decided it would just help him prove his point slightly better. But he needed to know where she was- and now that he was alone, he could search for her again. He strained his eyes, looking across the rooftops- after about a minute, he realized it was hopeless like that- Suki wasn't going to be seen if she didn't want to be seen. Unless...

He quickly marched forwards to the building in front of him, placing a hand against the wall and closing his eyes. He let his earthbending sense take over for now, scanning the surrounding buildings slowly- she had to be somewhere close, if she was still following him. He noticed that everything he saw was a bit fuzzy as it got farther away. If he just focused a little harder, then- His face flushed red instantly, as an image of Azula's dress filled his head- but it was on the ground, now, around her ankles, and she was stretching slowly, both arms over her head, back arched, sighing from the effort- Aang screamed and threw himself back from the building, eyes wide open and staring at the blank wall ahead of him.

Suki held Toph down, attempting to stifle her laughter with her hands. Katara leaned over her, shoving her face towards the small earthbender, her voice hushed and fierce. "What? What's wrong with Aang?!"

Toph sat up, one hand still over her own mouth, face flushed red. "Oh, there's nothing wrong with Twinkletoes- that was a perfectly healthy reaction." Katara glared, and Suki looked at her quizzically- Toph just kept laughing to herself, trying to keep quiet- she was NEVER going to let him live this down.

Azula snapped towards the scream, one hand covering herself and the other dancing with blue fire. "**What was that?!**"

Aang twisted towards the wall, snapped out of his daze- he struggled to stand as fast as possible, yelling over the wall as best he could. "S-Sorry! I just... I stepped on a rock and cut myself!" He looked down, gritting his teeth, and then raised his right foot and stomped it on a rock next to him, earning him a gash on his heel.

Toph grimaced- he was a very dedicated liar when he needed to be.

Azula stood firm for several seconds, eyes narrowed- and then relaxed, the fire in her hand dying down. "**You know, you wouldn't expect the most powerful being alive to be injured quite so easily!**"

Aang sat down slowly, resting his foot- he may have gone a bit overboard there- and laughed over the wall as loud as possible.

Azula smirked when she heard him laughing in reply- she shook her head, then, turning back to the dress she had picked out- it was a simple silk dress, ankle high and dark red, with long, hanging sleeves and a white sash around the middle to hold it together. She smiled- it was nice, she thought. Not amazing, but it would do- she absently wondered if they'd let her keep it at the asylum.

She paced to the river, now, staring into her reflection- her makeup was beginning to wear down. Sighing, she pulled her bangs out of her face and took a breath, dipping her face into the water for several moments and then pulling it back out.

Katara clenched her fists, trying to ignore the thought that if she had frozen the water just then, this could have all been over and done with.

Azula looked at her reflection again and used the back of her hand to wipe her face down carefully- and then she stared at herself for a few more seconds. Something was still wrong. She noticed that her hair was beginning to come loose- she stood and sighed, defeated, pulling her hairpin out and tossing it into the darkness, letting her hair topple down to it's full length, which as of now was just barely below her waist. She turned and grabbed the dress, lifting it up, glancing one more time at the gateway where Aang was waiting, and began to get dressed- trying not to think too hard about where she was going with all of this just yet.

On a small building in town with a nice view of the restaurant, Sokka awoke with a start, and soon realized that his arms and legs were being held still somehow- after some struggling, he noticed that he had been pinned to the rooftop with earthbending . He furrowed his brow, and would have screamed in anger were it not for the meteor-bracelet that was gagging his mouth. Eventually, he sank his head back on the stone- it would be a hollow victory, but at least they couldn't blame him for anything when this all turned out to be a complete **disaster.**


	7. Festival: 4

Aang had removed his shoes now- it was too hard to walk with them on, thanks to that cut on his left heel. He sighed, slapping one hand against his forehead- that had been a brilliant move- but it was all he could think of on such short notice. He hopped up, standing on one leg, and limped towards the town gate, leaning back against it- at least this way, he wasn't going to have to lie to Azula about what happened- he had stepped on a rock, and it cut his foot. He just had to leave out what happened before that, and that it was deliberate.

There was no way he was going to tell her what he saw, of course- he tried his best to keep from turning red again, and blocked the image from his mind- and even if he did, how could he explain why he was looking in the first place? He definitely wasn't going to tell her that his friends were stalking the both of them across the city all night against his wishes and were probably still somewhere nearby- now, he just hoped that they'd manage to stay out of her sight.

A loud snap behind him caused him to look up quickly, and he saw that Azula was standing a small distance outside the gates of the city, her right hand held in front of her- that explained the snap, he thought absently- and the other resting above her hip. His attention soon focused on her- her hair was down, and it was hanging all the way to her waist now, but her bangs stayed perfectly in place, like they always had- well, since they grew back, he thought.

She was wearing a dark red dress, which seemed more and more like a robe the longer he looked at it- he wondered if he had grabbed it in the store himself, or if it had been forced on him by those ladies in the shop- he couldn't remember now, instead focusing on exactly how stunning it looked in the moonlight. The dress was more form-fitting than the last- not tight by any means, but it certainly wasn't as billowing as her last. The arms of the dress seemed to hang against her own arms heavily- in fact, the whole dress had a weight about it that made it seem as if it was tugging against her shoulders and hips, and the white sash around her waist almost-

Aang was suddenly aware of one of her fingernails boring into his chest again, and his whole body froze. "You know, I'm feeling generous today, so I'll take this as a compliment- but it's still rude."

He quickly snapped his jaw shut, and became aware that he must have been staring- he rubbed the back of his head, smiling at her, hoping that the darkness would hide the redness in his face and being very glad that his earthbending sense hadn't given him a clearer image earlier... When she had been getting- he brushed his heel against the wall behind him to distract himself- that was the _last_ thing he needed to think about if he wanted to avoid any more new injuries tonight. "Sorry- you look... good! You look great!"

She looked down at him, smirking widely- he noticed that without her lips painted, her smirk seemed much less menacing. "Well, that was obvious- but it's still nice to hear." She pulled her fingernail out of his chest, and he could almost swear that his heart hadn't been beating until she did.

He grinned widely- maybe he could pull this off after all. He pivoted to the side on his right leg, still facing her. "So, should we be getting back now? I mean, we still probably have a few hours before anyone decides that I need to get you back..."

Azula scratched one of her fingernails lightly over her left temple, and eyed the small spots of blood on the stone street in front of her. "...You know, I think I'll just sit here for a while- you don't look like you're in any condition to be running around either."

Aang arched an eyebrow and chuckled to himself. "Oh, I didn't realize you were so worried-" Suddenly her nail was back, stabbing lightly between his eyes.

She smirked, leaning down into his face with her breath steaming again. "Oh, you could barely keep up with me when you were using _both_ legs, Aang, I'm just giving you a chance not to embarrass yourself."

He glared up at her sharply, eyebrows furrowed and a wide grin still on his face. "Oh, is that so?"

Azula smirked and took a step back as he stood up straight, teeth clenching as his foot hit the ground. He stood still for a few seconds, and then went to take a step forward- his foot seemed to not want to move, but the rest of his leg had no such problem, and so he tumbled head first towards the wet grass, arms flailing in an attempt to push himself back up with a gust of air-

Azula's hand wrapped firmly around the back of his robes and she lifted him completely off of the ground with one hand, staring at him with an arched eyebrow. He smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "...Alright, sitting sounds good."

Azula sighed and shook her head, slowly lowering him back to the ground. "I've never seen someone so thoroughly _enjoy_ making a fool out of themselves."

Suki looked down at Toph, noticing that her hand was twisted slightly in the mud next to her. "...Why-"

Toph shrugged her shoulders, not moving from her spot. "Well, I felt bad about knocking her down earlier, and I hadn't gotten to make Twinkletoes look like a wimp yet tonight, so I'm all caught up now."

Katara twisted her head around, just having noticed the noise behind her. "...Wait, what was that? Did you just-"

Toph held a hand up to her face, chewing on her fingernails absently, and Suki twisted around to watch the pair again. Katara stared for a few moments, eyes slowly moving over each of them, and then she sighed and turned back around- she really wished she didn't feel like they were plotting something. Behind her, Toph and Suki high-fived, and then continued their business.

Azula sat in the grass, kicking her shoes off after a moment, and Aang set himself slowly down next to her, smiling widely. She looked at him, and then at her feet. "...It's been a while since I got to be out in the grass." She leaned back, resting on her elbows.

She suddenly sat back up, staring at him with an excited grin that made him forget to breathe. "So- a _suit_?"

Aang laughed, pointing accusingly at her. "That was your fault, too! I've never seen you in anything that even looked like a dress until today- I just assumed you liked pants more!"

Azula laughed back, swatting his hand away. "Of course _you_ didn't- weren't you paying attention tonight? We both saw what would have happened if I had been trying to hunt you down in a dress."

Aang leaned back, putting both arms behind his head and resting against the grass. "Well, that wasn't so bad-"

Azula cleared her throat, and her voice suddenly became high and taunting. "You know, You look a lot lighter than you actually are."

Aang turned white, jumping back up to a sitting position. "That came out wrong!"

Azula grinned and jabbed a fingernail at his chest, which he dodged deftly. "Oh, no, you don't get to just apologize for that one- come here and tell me where you want your new scar!"

Aang laughed, crawling away from her as she jabbed and swiped at him with her nails. "Oh, come on- I'm going to have a hard enough time explaining all of these bruises to everyone as it is." He tried to stand up and fell backwards as his foot slipped against the wet grass, ending up spread-eagled on the ground. He looked down and grimaced. "**And** the _foot_! They're never going to believe these were all accidents."

Aang sat back up just in time for Azula to sit down beside him again, still laughing. He already knew, for the most part, exactly what kind of answers he'd be getting... but he had to ask anyways. "How are you getting along with everyone else so far?"

She put a hand in the grass, pulling a single blade out and then burning it between her fingers. "Well, actually, I haven't gotten much of a chance to find out yet- besides Toph, obviously."

Aang straightened his robes again, noticing his fall had twisted them around a bit. "Well, yeah, she does guard your cell a lot lately- I kind of thought you two would get along-"

Azula cut him off with a laugh. "I didn't say we got along- but we do seem to not hate each other, at least."

"Suki! Suki!" Toph immediately punched her in the arm, grinning, and Suki spun to look at her. "...**What?!**"

The small blind girl pointed towards the pair, still smiling as wide as possible. "I'm her favorite!" Suki glared at her and then huffed, turning back to them quietly. "Aww, _someone_'s a sore loser." She pretended not to hear that, narrowing her eyes.

Azula laid back again, looking up at the moon. "...Do I even have to _mention_ Katara?"

Katara jumped- since when did Azula use her name?

Aang laughed, running a hand over the arrow on his head slowly. "...No, not really. I wasn't expecting you two to get along that well anyways-" Azula sat up again, looking offended- had Aang been able to see Katara, he would have noticed they were making the exact same face.

He held a hand up towards her, laughing. "Hey- hold on! I just meant- well, think about it." He sighed, and his voice got noticeably lighter. "Katara is the most caring, sensitive, and all around nicest person I've ever seen-" His voice returned to normal- "But she's also got kind of a temper."

Azula grinned, putting a hand in front of her face. "Katara? Really? I never would have noticed." They both laughed again, and on the sidelines, Katara was absolutely outraged- he was **joking** about her being_ worried for his life?!_ How was she the unreasonable one here, when that-

Azula smiled widely, looking over at Aang. "...I have done a lot of things to make them all hate me, though."

Katara stopped suddenly- _what_ did she just say?

Azula's smile dropped, suddenly, and she glared towards him. "I'm not going to apologize to anyone, you know."

Katara's hopes were immediately dashed- she was _almost_ going to give her a chance.

Aang smiled back at her. "I know- I wasn't expecting you to."

She looked at him, genuinely caught a bit off guard. "...Why not?"

He sighed, shifting his position so that his left leg was stretched out and his right knee was against his chest. "In the time I've been traveling the world during the last month- as the Avatar, officially- I've realized something. This war has been going on for 100 years- longer than most people have even been _alive_- how can I expect them to change their minds and go against everything they've been taught was right their entire lives, just because I tell them it was wrong?" He laughed, not noticing the way she turned her head away at the last part. "I mean, sometimes, I have to wonder how I'm supposed to restore balance to these people- no one trusts anyone anymore."

Katara sat to the side, startled- Aang had a point. She mentally snapped at herself- the soldiers may have been brainwashed, but _Azula_ wasn't a soldier- she went above and beyond her call of duty when she **killed**** Aang**. _She_ was still a monster.

Azula tilted her head towards him lazily, hair flipping in the breeze. "Do you honestly think that _me_ and _Katara_ are ever going to be able to be _friends_?"

Aang closed his eyes and wagged a finger at her like a disappointed school teacher. "Don't jump to conclusions like that- she always manages to get along with people she's mad at if you give her enough time." Aang's smile widened and he looked towards her again. "I mean, we've even teamed up with most of the people she says she doesn't like- Zuko and Jet were both complete jerks, and she got along them both eventually. I mean, Jet was planning to flood an entire town of innocent people- and she had a _crush_ on that guy!"

Toph bolted upright- Twinkletoes **never** mentioned that. He never mentioned **anything** about that without getting upset, but he was still **calm**. She squatted closer to the ground, digging into the mud with her hands- she really needed to focus and see what was going on with him now.

Katara was in a partial state of shock- Aang wasn't- he never talked about _that_! This was- Aang got angry whenever people even _mentioned_ Jet- so why was he telling **Azula** this?!

Azula flicked her bangs out of her face, staring at Aang intently. "You know, a week ago, you probably would have stormed away if someone brought that up."

Aang smiled meekly at her, rubbing his shoulder, which had gotten stiff. "Yeah, I would have- I guess you're just lucky I can't walk right now!" He laughed, but Azula simply kept watching him.

She sighed, sitting straight up next to him and flattening her legs against the grass. "...So, have you talked to her about it? Since the play, I mean?"

Katara's hair stood on end- the **play**? She couldn't mean- he **told** her about that?! She clenched her fists against the rock, watching them closely.

Aang looked down, his smile still just as wide. "...No, we never got the chance-"

Azula scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest, the sleeves draping her down to the waist. "You know, you're not a very good liar- have either of you even tried to bring it up?"

"...No."

Azula stared down at him- he wouldn't even look at her. "Well, she knows how you feel about it- she has for a month, at least. But you're just running from her response- you can't-"

Aang's head snapped around, his smile just barely visible on his lips now, and he stared into her eyes, neither of them flinching. "I don't really want to talk about that right now, alright?"

They stared each other in the eyes for several moments, his clouded and gray, hers a brilliant gold- and he smiled wide again, laughing. "We're supposed to be talking about _your_ problems here, remember?"

Katara stood, in shock- did she just hear Azula... giving Aang advice... about _her_? She tried to breathe slower- did Aang really want to talk to her about it that much? She just- she hadn't thought about it since that night. She tried not to- she wasn't sure why, it was just... uncomfortable. Like thinking about it would be the end of something that she wasn't ready for yet.

Azula leaned back, yawning and stretching- Aang stretched his right leg out again, and bumped it into his left foot- he really hoped he could forget that image in his head soon, because he wasn't sure how long hurting himself was going to do the trick.

She rubbed her eye with one hand, looking towards him. "If we don't get to talk about anything _interesting_, then why don't you let me know how my dear old uncle and Zuzu are getting along without me?"

Aang grinned. "Well, Iroh has been back at his tea shop in Ba Sing Se-"

Azula cut him off suddenly. "...Come to think of it, what's the name of this town? We've been here all night, at a festival, and no one has mentioned it- it's not even written on the gate!"

Aang scratched the side of his head. "...You know, I'm really not sure- I just pointed to it on the map whenever I asked them to bring you here. ...Well, if it was that important, we'd probably find out sooner or later."

Azula shrugged, and Aang went back to his story. "Zuko's been having a bit of trouble being the Fire Lord, actually- he's great at speaking to the people- but I think he has Iroh write his speeches, because trust me, I've heard him make one on his own before. Not pretty." Azula nodded in agreement.

"So, basically, he's having problems sorting out the Fire Nation colonies lately- The Earth Kingdom wants their land back, but he can't just bring all the colonists back home- there are too many of them, and they'd have to leave everything they had behind. Of course, leaving them there means they're going to be attacked by angry Earth Kingdom citizens and soldiers who are still bitter over the war- so the obvious answer would be to leave guards for them. But if he has to leave Fire Nation soldiers to guard Fire Nation colonized towns- then things haven't really changed at all since the war ended. It's getting to him, lately- he's been more and more stressed every day." A sly grin crossed his face. "Maybe we should introduce him to that creepy waitress- she'd probably think all of his ideas were brilliant."

Azula cracked up at this, one hand over her mouth. "Oh, that wouldn't work- Zuzu's not nearly fun enough to get together with a girl who has so much... _personality_." She continued laughing to herself, almost breathless- and noticed that Aang was staring at her, puzzled. She calmed herself, looking at his face- it clicked, and she almost burst out laughing again. He must not have noticed how amazingly _blessed_ the girl had been- and she sighed, pointing to her own chest awkwardly.

Aang stared at her hand for a moment, and then her dress- what did she mean by that? He scratched the side of his head- and suddenly, when he caught her meaning at last, he could actually feel his entire face flushing red in an instant, and he turned away as fast as he possibly could.

Azula hadn't realized how downright clueless he could be- and when she saw him staring, completely confused and lost, and then his face had lit up- she couldn't take it anymore and began laughing uncontrollably, tears welling in her eyes. "_How_ did you not _see_ those?! I thought she was stealing ice-melons!" Despite his complete embarrassment, Aang found himself laughing along with her- and he remembered something he had been planning to do earlier.

Katara was over her initial shock at Aang and Azula's earlier discussion- and had moved into an entirely new area of shock. Seeing the two of them there, laughing like mad together- Azula almost looked like a normal person. For just a minute she thought to herself- what if Azula really is getting better? She shook her head- it seemed so impossible, but... If anyone could do it, it was Aang. She looked up at them again, and felt something- why was seeing them just laughing like this making her so... uneasy? Angry?

Aang calmed his laughing, looking over at Azula, who was still doubled over, one hand on her side and one on rubbing her eye. He smiled as widely as he could manage and cleared his throat. "You know, you've got an amazing laugh-" The way she stopped suddenly and looked at him, stunned, went unnoticed- "You definitely can't escape from me now that I gave you an extra compliment!" Azula started laughing again suddenly, turning away from him.

Aang stopped smiling when he noticed this, and realized she was being quiet- had he said something wrong? Oh, this was just great- "Ah, Azula?" No response. "...Is something wrong?"

Toph bolted upright and noticed Suki looking at her- they nodded to one another and turned, slowly moving behind Katara, who was too entranced on Aang and Azula to notice. Suki brought her fist to her mouth, kissed her knuckles, and waited, trying to stay calm- as soon as Toph gave the signal...

Azula looked up at the moon for a moment- What was she thinking, doing this? She was going to regret it- she was already an inmate in an asylum, what was the worst they could possibly do? Well... suppose that things went right for her- She smiled widely to herself, biting her lip- she could only do worse for herself than Aang.

Azula turned, suddenly, and her left hand shot past Aang so suddenly that it stung his cheek- the nails dug gently into the back of his neck, and she pulled her arm closer, lowering herself a bit, her eyes closed, lips parted slightly, holding her breath. Her lips settled against his softly, brushing against him, staying for just a few moments before she let him back a bit, opening her eyes to look into his.

In all honesty, it had happened so fast that Aang hadn't had time to think about it- and now that it _had_ happened, he was far too stunned to _start_ thinking about it. His eyes were wide open, unblinking, and he was holding still like a doll in her hand.

Suki was on edge- why hadn't Toph given the signal yet?! The small girl held her hand towards Suki, motioning to remain still for now- Suki looked at Katara- she was standing dumbstruck, her eyes wide open, mouth hanging, arms at her sides, not moving. But how long until she got her senses gathered? She looked at the moon, and then down at Toph again- where was that signal already?!

Azula stared at Aang for a moment, waiting to see if he was going to react on his own- she leaned in closer to him, deciding to force him back into action. He stopped her with a hand against her shoulder, gently pushing her back, his eyes still wide open. "A... Azula? What... are you doing?"

His voice was so distant, so quiet- she could tell he still wasn't quite aware of what was happening yet. She lowered her voice, speaking to him in almost a whisper. "I'd think that would be pretty obvious by now, even to you."

He shook his head, slowly, blinking a few times- now he was coming back to his senses. "No- I mean... no, why?!"

She stared into his eyes, now clearer, but still wide- wide with shock, confusion, he was astonished- she smiled as she looked into his eyes, relieved. He wasn't angry. He wasn't disgusted, or afraid. She leaned closer to him, her breath warm enough that his skin was flushing. "This is all your fault, _Aang-_" she almost sighed his name. "You shouldn't have been so damned _charming_."

Aang was blown away, suddenly finding himself lost again just moments after having come back from his daze- what did she just say? She couldn't mean that-

She moved her right hand up onto his bare shoulder, and held him, moving in closer now and kissing him again- harder this time, and he fell backwards as she pushed him down, her hair falling past her shoulders and rolling over him as he hit the grass with her still on top. She pulled back up slowly, noticing the red marks her lips had made across his, even though her makeup had washed off. She breathed out, heavily, and in the night air he could see steam.

She began to lower herself again- he held one hand up in front of his chest, stopping her- he was trying his best to ignore the position she had him in. His voice was low, almost unheard thanks to the pounding in his chest. "...Please. I need you to stop- I'm not... Katara. I'm not going to betray her."

He held still for a moment- and she pulled back, sitting up straight, but he was still pinned beneath her. In the moment he could see her eyes, she looked... hurt. He felt a pang of remorse- that wasn't what he wanted to-

"...Of course you'd see it that way." Her voice was like a stab in the gut, and she pulled her head back, looking into the sky for a moment, and when she looked back at him they were blazing. She leaned down again, closer to him, and pushed his hand against his chest, pressing down. She stared him in the eyes, now, and her voice was full of anger.

"I'm not just going to sit on my hands and wait for another _month_, or another _year_, or however _long_ it takes for her to decide whether or not you're worth her time before I take my chances- I'm not confused at _all_." His eyes went wide as her lips crushed his for the third time, and she held him under her, her fingers and breath and every bit of her warming anywhere it touched. She pulled herself off again, slowly- she let him up and stepped back as he climbed to his feet unsteadily. She could tell that he understood, looking into his eyes- and she found that she was very happy that he had.

He stared at her, amazed, speechless, and she looked back at him, not quite willing to smile yet. "...You know, I'm not expecting you to give up on Katara." She wasn't looking at him anymore, her eyes on the ground. "In fact, maybe if she hears about this she'll decide to make her move too." She laughed, and he could tell it was hollow. "And, you know I'm not expecting anything from you in return. I'm not _that_ gullible." Aang took a step forward, noticing her voice shaking now. "...As a matter of _fact_- you're the gullible one. That's it, this was all just a joke- you can run off back to your little-" Her voice stopped as his hand grabbed hers, squeezing it. She snapped her head down to look at him, her eyes narrowed, and saw him smiling widely.

Aang's voice was solid again, and he tried to sound as reassuring as possible. "Azula- please. I'm just... confused. Give me a little time to think this all over, alright?"

Her lips quickly curled into a her usual smirk. "Glad to hear it."

His smile dropped, and he looked at her, shocked. "...Why would you be glad-"

The hand he hadn't grabbed snaked it's way along his jaw, nails biting in. "Well, if you're confused... that means I've got a chance to help you make up your mind." His eyes narrowed a bit- she recovered from that little mini-breakdown a little too fast for-

Toph and Suki high fived in the distance, still watching from behind their boulder, as Azula pulled Aang in again, with little resistance on his part. Suki looked down at Katara, unconscious at her feet- she would never be able to thank Ty Lee enough for those pressure point lessons.

Toph sat still for a moment, and then let out a loud yawn, stretching her arms and leaning down next to Katara. "I really wish she could have waited to try and rush them until _after_ that line about him not betraying her."

Suki stared down at her, frowning. "I wish we could have taken her out before she had to see any of that at all. It must have been horrible-"

Toph's laughing cut her off, and she stared, bewildered. "...What are you-"

Toph punched her in the arm, grinning. "Trust me- Katara needed to see that." Suki raised an eyebrow. Toph sighed again. "Look, just take my word for it- seeing something like that puts everything in perspective for you."

Suki watched her for a moment, thinking. She was talking like she had- she noticed Toph tapping her foot against the ground. Something clicked in Suki's mind- she sees through... the ground. So that meant- after the prison break, when she had gone to see Sokka, she would have- **no**. She **couldn't**- Suki stared down at the small earthbender, her face beginning to redden, and Toph simply grinned and gave her a thumbs up.

Sokka had long since given up trying to chew through the meteor bracelet gagging him, and simply hoped now that either he would be rescued soon, or the restaurant just down the road would stop tormenting him with the smell of freshly prepared food. The sun was beginning to rise over the plaza, now, and he laid back against the stone roof, wondering exactly how much fun Toph and Suki were having being completely wrong about Aang and Azula's 'secretly budding romance', and laughed to himself. Honestly- that had to be the most ridiculous idea he'd _ever_ heard.


	8. After the Festival: Debriefing

This chapter took forever to write- I officially _hate_ writing anything dramatic and/or romantic. For those of you who like to leave reviews- point out any mistakes you notice, so I can run back to fix them.

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Katara awoke with a start- there was some kind of commotion outside the room... wait, she was in a room? She groggily stood up, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed- where... was she? There was a mirror, and... a large window. There were lanterns hanging outside- it was morning, so they weren't lit. Stretching, she noticed something- her neck was sore. She rubbed it absently- it felt like a small bruise. Again, something from outside the room- it sounded like an argument. She walked slowly to the door- she could make out the voices now, but she wished her head would clear a bit more- she still had no idea where she was.

Suki stood firmly between Sokka and Toph in the small hallway of the inn- they had been arguing for quite some time now, which was understandable- he had, after all, come back from being stuck to a roof for half of the night, only to find that his best friend had apparently gotten romantically entangled with the former princess of the Fire Nation, who was as of now a war criminal and an inmate at an asylum. He had a surprisingly easy time dealing with that when he had finally been made to believe it- mainly because he was now focused on the fact that his girlfriend had knocked his sister unconscious while all this was going on.

Suki put a hand on Sokka's shoulder, trying to calm him down, and spoke in her most sympathetic tone. "She was going to attack them, Sokka, we didn't really have much of a choice about it-"

He shrugged out of her grasp. "She was trying to _protect_ Aang! Unlike you two, obviously, who took it upon yourselves to rub out half of the people who were supposed to be guarding him-"

Toph cut him off with a smirk, shifting against the wall. "You know, I can't seem to remember him calling out to be rescued while we were there."

Katara's eyes narrowed- okay, that had done the trick. The last thing she could remember before waking up here- Aang... and Azula had shoved him down, was laying on top of him with that _smirk_, and exactly what was he _doing_- That must have been when they got her. She felt the back of her neck again... It had to have been Suki. She shoved the door open roughly, stepping into the hallway- she noticed the sudden silence and ignored it, instead looking for the next door she could find and rushing towards it.

Exhausted, laying face down in a pillow just down the hall, Aang tried to remember exactly how long it had been since he slept in a real bed- it must have been three or four days, at least, but now that he was actually getting a chance to rest, he found he couldn't stop his mind from doing all it could to keep him awake. He ground his heel against the bed as hard as he could, and wondered exactly how long that scene of Azula getting dressed- or rather, undressed- was going to keep popping in uninvited.

It seemed his thoughts had grown accustomed to that method of expelling them, however- instead of allowing him to clear his head like usual, the feeling of his foot pushing against the blanket simply made him remember the feeling of Azula's dress when she shoved him to the ground. Trying to ignore it simply brought him to the kiss- not the first or second- he had been taken by surprise. The third was forceful- he had tried to avoid that one... hadn't he? But the fourth... he hadn't fought her at all. And then the fifth- the last- that one was _his_. He shook his head again, letting the realization settle- _h_e had kissed _her_. _Azula._

He could feel his heart racing- he put a hand to his head, feeling his face burning, and ran a hand along the cool blue arrow marking his scalp- what was it that he should do? What should he be feeling, now? He slumped against the bed again- he loved Katara, not a doubt in his mind, but if what he felt for Katara was love, then... didn't that mean that he loved Azula, too? He rubbed his jaw, absently- it wasn't like the thought had never crossed his mind. In the time he'd gotten to know her, she had been an amazing- he shook his head- but he wasn't supposed to be _in_ love with her. And she definitely wasn't supposed to be in love with _him_- the idea sent shivers down his spine, and it took him a moment to realize that he was smiling when he did so. He was supposed to be _better_ than this- he glared at himself coldly in the small mirror, and noticed his bruises were coming in at last.

He removed the top of his robes, checking himself out- aside from the large bruises, he had several small cuts in his right shoulder and a few small cuts in his cheek from Azula's fingernails. As soon as he started remembering the feeling of her nails against the back of his neck, he laid his face in his hands, slowly rubbing his eyes- he definitely needed some rest. There was no way to sort all of this out now, when so much had happened- he wondered what Katara was going to do when she woke up, and found himself wringing his hands.

He had learned all about what happened from Toph and Suki when everyone got back and settled- he was still amazed at the act they had managed to put on for Azula, considering all that had happened, but to make things easier they had waited to rescue Sokka until after she had retired to her room and he could be dealt with more discreetly. Katara, though, was still unconscious- they didn't have a choice, they needed to keep her from attacking and blowing their cover... but Aang was more worried about the fact that when it had been happening, he hadn't considered that the others might have seen them- or was he just too caught up to care?

He grabbed his staff from beside the bed and tried to stand, suddenly- there was no point to it, really, he just couldn't clear his head enough to _sleep_ right now. He started towards the window and shut the small curtains, hobbling with the glider on the way- his foot _really_ hurt, for some reason. He looked down and noticed the stains of red on the dark stone floor, sighing- of course, he would have had to tear the wound open again before it even got a chance to start healing properly. The sound of the door cracking behind him caused him to spin around too quickly- it took his eyes a moment to adjust to the light in the hall.

"...Katara!" He smiled widely, completely forgetting his exhaustion- he took a step forward awkwardly, forgetting to use his staff, and his knee buckled- quickly, he pulled himself up, hoping it was too dark in the small room for her to notice his slip. "Are you alright?"

Katara stared into the room, attempting to let her eyes adjust to the darkness for a few moments, speaking as nonchalantly as she could manage. "Of course I am- Suki just knocked me out for a few hours, it looks like. Nothing permanent."

Aang stared straight ahead, trying not to let her see the way his smile twitched at her voice. She was definitely angry- he expected that. He sat back down against the bed, glider in hand, sighing in relief- at least she as alright. "...That's good, then."

Katara glared at Aang- she tried to stay angry, she really did. She was planning to rush in here and berate him, ask him what he was _thinking_- but something about him threw her off, and she found herself softening. She closed the door behind her, shutting off the light from the hallway now, and as she became accustomed to the dark room she could see him more clearly- he was bruised along the chest and shoulder- he had cuts in his cheek and his chest- she was taken aback when she noticed the sound of a small drip, and noticed the blood from his heel already at work staining the floor beneath him. She stared intently at the ground, biting her lip. "...Do you need me to heal you?"

Aang glanced up, smiling again- it sounded like she was feeling slightly less angry, even if it was just out of the pity he must have inspired- he was in pretty sad shape right now. "No, I don't even have any water nearby- and the air here is so dry it'd take a while to get any that way- so don't worry about it. I'll be fine."

Katara's eye twitched slightly at this. "_Fine_. Just like those scars on your arm and your chest are _fine_, then?"

Aang was surprised at the sudden bitterness in her voice. "...Those? Those are nothing-"

"_Nothing_ wouldn't have left a scar." She was staring him down, now, and he could feel the air thickening. "Why didn't you come and see me when you got them? You know I could have healed them in a few minutes, at most- _then_ you would be fine, and they'd be nothing."

Aang stood again, firm this time, meeting her gaze. "I was dealing with a riot in the Earth Kingdom- I didn't really have the time to swing by the Southern Water Tribe afterwards-"

"Had to run and visit Azula, right?" Her voice was smug, taunting.

Aang sighed in frustration, furrowing his eyebrows. "_Yes_, I _was_ almost late for her **therapy **that day."

Katara scoffed at him, ignoring the obvious way he was getting more and more tense. "Look at you- you're a wreck! You could at least take a rest- I can see the bags under your eyes, even in this light."

Aang took a deep breath, trying to sound as serene as possible. "Because the world needs me to be the Avatar, now- because I have to make up for the last 100 years when I _should_ have been helping them. I have to put what the people of the world need before myself-"

She immediately took a step forward, almost yelling now. "The needs of the _world_- so why exactly are Azula's needs so important all of a sudden?"

Aang tightened his grip on his glider, knuckles whitening. "Because Zuko asked me to help her-"

Katara clenched her teeth. "Zuko doesn't even _want_ to help her anymore-"

Aang looked away for a moment, stepping towards the mirror. "That's because he doesn't even _want_ Azula back! He just wanted me to walk into her cell and pull out a completely different person that he could tell everyone was his sister- as soon as he realized that it wasn't going to instantly **erase** every problem they had with each other, he decided it was a waste of time."

Katara stood for a moment, startled, and Aang looked back towards her, his expression softened. "...And after I actually saw her- the condition she was in- I couldn't live with myself if I didn't do everything I could to try and help her."

She readjusted her position, now, crossing her arms. "...So why does it have to be so often? Why is it that you can't take a short break to come and visit everyone- we barely even get to see you now, Aang."

Aang looked down- he was worried he may have been a bit harsh there. "Look- don't take this the wrong way, but I knew you guys could handle yourselves for a while without me. Azula... she needed all the help I could offer."

Katara leaned back a bit- she might as well get to what she wanted to talk to him about, anyways- she sighed, calming herself down. "...So exactly how did telling her all about... well, _us_, help her?"

Aang grimaced- he had forgotten she heard that part of the conversation. "...Look, I needed to get closer to Azula to help her, alright? That's the only reason I told her about all of that."

Toph stood at the door, listening, amazed- that was a **lie**. Since when did Twinkletoes lie to _Katara_? This was starting to get good- she lowered herself, blocking out Sokka and Suki's discussion behind her. She wanted to hear the rest of this- and she definitely wasn't going to let Twinkletoes get out of here without finding out what he was _really_ up to.

Katara could quickly feel herself losing control of what she was saying, but she didn't care at this point. "So, do you think you got **close** enough to her, yet? Or were you planning to-"

Aang took a step forward, his voice growing louder now, eyes narrowed. "**Really**? **That's** what this is all about?!" Katara winced- maybe she had gone a bit far. "I'd never even **thought** about that before this all happened, Katara!"

Toph was squatting close to the door, disappointed- both of them were so worked up now that she couldn't tell if they were lying or not. She tried to ignore the small pang of guilt that came with hearing the pair yelling at one another- she wondered if she should feel responsible for it at all, but her inner musings were quickly interrupted as Sokka and Suki crowded against the door with her, jostling for the best position to overhear what had now become a very interesting conversation.

Aang looked at the ground, stepping back and sitting on the bed quickly, his face the very picture of remorse. "...Katara- I'm sorry. I didn't-"

She interrupted him, her voice quieter now as well, trying not to look at him. "No, I'm sorry- I was baiting you, I just..."

They sat still in the dark room for a small time, eyes locked on the floor, neither one willing to break the silence. Finally, the soft sounds of rain hitting the window made Katara wrenched her gaze off of the small specks of blood on the stone in front of her, looking at Aang intently. "...So... are you thinking about it now? Her, I mean. And you."

"...I think I am." He slowly opened his eyes, breathing out- somehow, he had expected... something, when he finally said it out loud- a stabbing pain in the chest, or maybe relief- but there was nothing except a renewed silence in the room. Looking at Katara, he could tell she must have been thinking the same thing.

Toph backed away from the door, moving to guard the room Azula was sleeping in- there was nothing else that she needed to hear, anyways.

Katara's voice was still quiet, but the anger and stress had left, now- all Aang could hear was concern, and he was surprised to feel relieved at this. "What if she was lying to you? It could be some kind of trick."

He sat for a second, then smiled, looking back at her. "She's wasn't- and it's not."

Katara leaned forward, resting her hands against the floor. "But how can you be sure? She's so good at it that even Toph can't tell the difference."

"You don't have to use earthbending to know when someone means what they said- especially not something like that." He adjusted himself slightly on the bed, pulling his legs up so that he was in a more comfortable position, and tried not to agitate his foot any more than he had to.

Katara noticed that his bleeding had stopped, now- how long had they been sitting here? She shook her head, standing slowly. "Aang... even if you say it, I don't think I can believe this."

Aang stood slowly, stretching as he did, and straightened his shoulders, still clutching the staff in his hand. "So go hear it from her." Katara's eyes widened, and he smiled. "She's in a room at the end of the hall- sleeping, the last time anyone checked. If you want to decide for yourself whether or not she's serious about it, there's no better way, right?"

Katara shifted her footing uncomfortably, not looking him in the eyes now, and could hear the rain outside starting again. "...And are you going to be there to guard her?"

For the first time in what seemed like ages to him, Aang grinned across the room at her, and his voice returned to it's usual playful tone. "Oh, come on- I trust you. I mean, I also trusted you all not to _follow_ me, but hopefully this has taught you an important lesson." Katara glared up at him, a small smile at the edge of her lips.

Suddenly, Aang waved a hand absently through the air in front of his face, watching it closely. Katara raised an eyebrow at him, and he frowned at her. "Right, I thought something was funny- I'm starting to see double, so- if it's alright with you- I'm going to try to get some rest. We can talk about this as much as we need to later, right?"

Katara nodded gently, still smiling, and put a hand on her hip. "You do that- but first, can I at _least_ take care of that foot?"

Aang looked down, clenching his teeth at the recently re-reopened wound, and sighed heavily, sitting back on the bed with a beaten smirk.

Sokka was standing in the center of the hallway, staring wide-eyed at Suki and Toph, both standing in front of him, hands on their hips. "...So... you mean that Toph really saw-"

"Not _saw_- but yeah, everything." Toph grinned up at him, and he could feel himself growing faint- that was just-

"...And... _why_ were you watching?!" He glared, doing his best to keep his voice hushed, despite feeling like he could have died from the shame at any moment.

Toph pointed at him accusingly, baring her teeth. "It wasn't like I had much of a choice! I'm just trying to get some sleep, I roll over, and the next thing I know- **BAM**- there it is!" He tried not to cringe, putting his face in his hands.

Suki put a hand on his arm, trying to calm him down. "Look, Sokka- it's not that big a deal." He looked at her, horrified, and she raised an eyebrow. "...What? I mean, it's not like-" He jabbed a finger over her shoulder, and she suddenly felt a delicate hand resting there.

"Thanks, for earlier- I got a little bit too wound up." Suki recognized Katara's voice and turned, hoping that the other girl hadn't noticed the small yelp she made, only to see her already making her way to the end of the hallway.

It took everyone there a moment to realize what had happened- Suki let out a sigh of relief, smiling warmly. Toph and Sokka just stared, horrified, as she slipped through the doorway at the end of the hall into the pitch black room, disappearing from view before they properly react.

Aang stepped up behind the trio as they all seemed to be frozen- Sokka finally started to make a move for the room, stumbling as he went, and Aang sighed. "Guys-" They whirled to face him. "It's fine. Let her go ahea-"

Sokka's hands were suddenly wrapped around his shoulders, and he was being shaken back and forth violently. "Are you _insane_?! You know whose room that is!"

Aang grabbed Sokka's arms, stopping him for a moment, and sighed, wondering how many times he was going to have to go over this. "Look, Sokka, I know you're worried, but I' positive that Azula's not going to-"

Sokka stared at him for a moment before slapping his face into his palm, growling in frustration. "Not _Azula_, Aang- we had to knock Katara out once already because she was trying to freeze you both-"

Suki shot a hand up from behind him. "Actually, it looked more like she was about to use that bloodbending stuff you guys mentioned."

Sokka stood up, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers and clenching his teeth. "Oh, well, that's just wonderful- you know what? New team rule- we never schedule _anything_ important on a full moon from now on. _How_ do we keep giving her excuses to try this stuff out?!"

Aang quickly grabbed Sokka by the shoulders, staring him determinedly in the eyes. "Look- trust me- it's going to be fine. You and Suki just head out to the town for a while- you can go by that nice little restaurant at the plaza! Me and Toph can handle anything that happens here."

Sokka gave him a glare, staring back towards the door at the end of the hall- there hadn't been any damage done yet, at least... and that restaurant _had_ spent half the night taunting him with promises of a particularly well roasted cow hippo steak- and he was _really_ going to have to thank Zuko for exporting those from the Fire Nation later...

Suki gave Aang a quick nod, grabbing Sokka by the arm and dragging him out while he was still lost in thought- Toph just glared as they disappeared slowly down the stairs. "I _really_ hope you weren't expecting to kick back and sleep while I played referee."

Aang gave her a sly grin, not really thinking about whether she could see it or not. "The thought never crossed my mind. Now, you're pretty good at things like this- so what's the best way to spy on that back room without them noticing?"

Toph turned and gave him a quick punch in the arm before returning his grin. "I'm not sure I like what you're implying about me there, Twinkletoes- but are you really sure you want to go spying on those two after all those little speeches about trust?"

Aang waved a hand dismissively at her. "That's totally different- I trust them just fine, as long as they're not _together_. Katara's got kind of a temper, and Azula is... well, let's just agree she can rub people the wrong way." He noticed Toph snickering, and slapped a palm against his face. "If you don't make that joke, I won't tell Zuko how all of Mai's knives ended up at the bottom of a lake and put her in such an awful mood before the wedding."

Toph tried not not sound _too_ disappointed. "...Fine. There's a room next to hers, right? We can just go in there and crack the walls a little bit- we'll be able to hear everything, and keep hidden, as long as you can keep your knees from shaking too loud."

Aang decided to ignore that. "Alright, then- just lead the way."

Toph took a few steps down the hall, and then slowed to let Aang catch up, grinning. "...So, what way would you say she was rubbing _you_, Twinkletoes?"

Aang clenched his teeth, ignoring the obvious redness in his face. "You _know_ Zuko is going to make you pay."

"He can try- and it was **still** worth it." She gave him another quick jab in the arm, and he silently wondered if there was anywhere he _wasn't_ going to be bruised by the end of this mess.

The first thing Katara noticed about the room was how dark it managed to be on her side, while simultaneously being a warm golden color near the window, the light splitting the room almost in half, right across the bed. The second thing she noticed was the bed itself- it was normal enough, until you realized that there were large metal bars sticking out from underneath it, curving up and around like some kind of massive reptile bird-cage. She shook her head, realizing from a sudden glimmer of gold that Azula was already awake, sitting up now and glaring at her half-lidded from the bed.

Katara tried to ignore the sudden dryness in her throat. "Aang- he told us everything."

Azula stared at her for a moment, no reaction visible on her face- then she simply fell backwards against the sheets, arms wide. "So- are you planning to do anything about it? You'd probably be able to get away with it since there aren't any guards, but you should probably hurry-"

Katara put her hands up in front of her in an almost apologetic manner, sighing. "We... we just need to talk about what happened."

Azula sat back up straight again, sliding to the edge of her bed and casually running one of her nails along the metal bars. "No, I think y_ou're_ the one who _needs_ to talk about it- but I'll be happy to clear up any questions you have anyways."

Katara was surprised- she had walked into this room fully expecting that she'd be getting dragged back out by her friends after making a lunge for Azula's throat- but she wasn't angry with her- she wondered if it was because of the bars between them. "No, we _both_ need to talk about it- for Aang's sake, if nothing else."

Azula stared at her for several moments, placing her hands in her lap, not showing any emotion on her face whatsoever. "...Well, there's no point in dragging this out- the sooner you get _started_ the sooner we can all get back to _sleep_."

Katara sat herself down in a small chair, trying to decide- where _should_ she start? She'd never honestly expected to get any kind of cooperation out of her in the first place... well, it was best to start off with something simple. "...So, why did Aang tell you about- about me, and him?"

Toph felt Aang tense immediately, and decided she'd have to think of some way to thank Katara later- she couldn't have come up a better way to start it off herself.

Azula smirked, stretching one hand in front of her and seeming to absently admire her nails. "Because I made him."

Katara tried not to give a noticeable reaction. "...Why?"

Azula sighed, leaning back and resting her palms against the edge of the bed. "Knowing _you_, you've already hassled him about that scar on his arm, right?

Katara sat forward a bit, ignoring Azula's suggestion that she _knew_ her. "That was from a riot in the Earth Kingdom- What does that-"

Azula laughed through the bars so forcefully that Katara rocked back in her chair, startled. "Do you _honestly_ think that a bunch of Earth Kingdom peasants could have inured the **Avatar** so badly under normal circumstances?" Katara opened her mouth to speak, and Azula put a finger up to shush her. "You're not giving him enough credit, then- he got himself pummeled because he was _distracted_. Of course I tried to make him tell me what it was that made him so careless- he avoided the question, but by that point we had other things to talk about, and I didn't press the issue. Several sessions later, he came in again- smart enough to hide the _bleeding_, but he couldn't cover up the problem he was having breathing."

Katara narrowed her eyes, her attention drifting- that scar on his chest-

Azula snapped, bringing her back, and gave her a commanding glare. "_So_- I made him tell me about that, too. Turns out there was another little riot in the Earth Kingdom- and again, he'd gotten himself banged around because he was _distracted_. It was obvious that he had to tell _someone_, or he was just going to get himself pulverized over and over- so I decided to make him tell me."

Katara arched an eyebrow at this. "So why didn't you just _let_ him keep getting injured? It seems like the kind of thing you'd get a kick out of."

Azula let out another small laugh. "Normally, I would have- but I was in an _asylum_- I don't exactly get much company, and I wasn't going to let one of my only sources of entertainment get himself _killed_ by some unruly little children playing around with their earthbending."

Toph noticed Aang tense up a bit, and wondered if bringing him along to spy on these two was really that great of an idea- well, at least _she_ was going to be getting some entertainment out of this mess.

Katara clenched her hand against her seat. "...So, what _was_ distracting him?"

Azula smirked and tilted her head to the side a bit, her hair tumbling across her shoulders. "You don't really have to ask, do you? He couldn't get over how confused _you_ were making him-" She noticed Katara tensing up and paused for a moment. "...As soon as I actually managed to get him talking about it, he told the whole story- you and your brother finding him in an iceberg, traveling the world with him in an attempt to master waterbending, and all of his _mostly_ futile attempts to get your attention- and of course, the time **you** beat Zuzu to a pulp at the North Pole, which I _have_ to admit was my favorite part of the story." Katara found herself straining not to smirk at the memory.

Azula shifted a bit, crossing her arms, her smirk fading. "Things got a little more interesting when I pressed him to talk about the two of you specifically, though, and he told me about the time you went chasing after some little earthbender you knew in _prison_- and forgot about the next day, so apparently _that_ didn't work out." Katara bit her lip, fighting the urge to get up and just leave. "And then you all met up with a dashing young terrorist called _Jet_." Katara winced, trying not to break eye contact. "Oh, don't be so touchy- he told me you had _no_ way to know what he was planning until after you were wrapped around his finger anyways." Katara glared at her, and Azula raised a hand. "My words, not his." Katara was biting her lip at this point, almost ready to just up and leave- the former princess smirked widely, feeling a bit like her old self again, and continued. "So, by this point, we'd established that you have _awful_ taste- and Aang was still absolutely in love with you."

Azula clenched her fist- she _wanted_ to mention how his love for Katara was directly responsible for his death in Ba Sing Se, but he had made her **swear** not to tell anyone about that- and for some reason, it seemed needlessly cruel to lay that on her as well. Her nails bit into her palm- that was officially the most _ridiculous_ thing she'd ever thought. "...Did you know that he actually thought you might have had a thing for Zuko?" Katara's eyes bulged, and she tried not to laugh. "I know- it's preposterous, and I told him so, but apparently you two were standing a little bit close for comfort when he found you in that cave- and then the Ember Island fiasco didn't help any..."

Katara lowered her head, trying to absorb this. "So... why didn't he come talk to me about it?"

Azula stared for a moment, looking confused. "...You're joking, right?"

Katara tried to be patient, biting her lip. "What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

Azula sighed, toying with one of her bangs with her fingernails. "Because _you_ told him **not** to talk to you about it!" Katara started to speak, and Azula simply raised her voice over her. "Think- he finally comes straight out and tells you how he feels, just days before the biggest event of his life thus far- and you tell him that you're too confused to talk about it- that you need time to sort it out, and then you _leave_ and never _mention_ it to him again. He deals with it as best he can, but later on, it starts affecting his performance in battle- he could run to you to get healed, of course, but then you'd obviously want to know how he got hurt. He then has two choices- lie to you, tell you he simply wasn't good enough to avoid it, and appear weak- or he could tell the _truth_, that he couldn't stop thinking about _you_, and seem like an impatient child who couldn't put his personal needs aside in order to carry out his duties." She sighed, leaning back, and took a breath- she hadn't gotten to go on a good demeaning rant in far too long, now.

Katara sat still for a moment, obviously shaken, and Azula stared at her- she had better say something or this might go on for a while. "Look, we _both_ know you're entirely too _nice_ to ever think less of him for being injured- but he doesn't think of things like that, you know. If he has a choice, he'll always make it harder on himself instead of troubling other people- you should know that by now, right?"

Katara nodded gently, relaxing in her chair, her head still swimming as she tried to absorb all of this. At the very least, she knew what she wanted to know next- she just had to figure out how to say it. "...Azula." She waited for a reaction, and got none. "...I'm not really sure how to ask you something-"

Azula sat forward, smiling widely. "So just _ask_. The best way to handle complicated matters like this is to just be direct about it- or hadn't you learned that from my rousing success last night?"

Katara wondered how noticeable it was that her knuckles were whitening against the chair beneath her, smiling as politely as she could. "Alright- direct it is. Are you in love with Aang, Azula?"

There was a deafening silence as Azula's face seemed to change in an instant, lips straightening and tightening against each other, her eyes narrowing down to a half lidded stare. Katara could feel the hair on the back of her neck standing up, and wondered for a moment if she might have been a little _too_ direct.

Toph marveled at Azula's calm- she was the only one in either room who wasn't holding their breath for an answer. Katara was on the edge of her seat, and Aang was focusing intently on not making a sound-

Suddenly, Azula's smile returned, and she looked towards the wall just to the left of her bed. "Toph." The small earthbender tried not to yelp. "I know you're over there- and don't worry, I'm not going to be blaming _you_ for this."

She sighed in relief and felt Aang's heart stop cold. "Works for me, but how did you-"

Azula laughed, cutting her off. "Don't worry- you couldn't help it anyways. But you might want to tell **Aang** that the _next_ time he wants to try something like this, he should make sure he _covers the lights_."

Katara suddenly became aware that since the window was _behind_ Azula, she shouldn't have been able to see her face at all- her eyes trailed slowly along the wall she was speaking at, and finally noticed the many thin streams of light coming out of it.

Toph glared at Aang as he slowly backed away from her, smiling sheepishly- she began to march towards him, yelling over her shoulder at the wall. "Are either of you going to mind if I-"

"Do whatever you think is necessary, Toph." There was a moment before everyone realized that Katara and Azula had spoken in unison, and a collective shudder passed through both rooms- Aang knew that he would be hearing that sound in his nightmares for weeks to come.

Katara turned towards Azula suddenly, realizing that she still wanted her answer. "...Azula- if you don't mind, I'd still like to hear-"

The former princess held her hand up, stopping her. "Of course- one moment." She turned towards the wall again. "Toph! Could you make sure he can't hear us for a moment?"

"Oh, no problem!" Toph turned back to Aang, grinning widely, and he tried to back away- the next thing he knew she had him in some sort of headlock, and his world was filled with an excruciating pain.

"I'm telling you, that's not why I was looking at the waitress- I didn't even _notice_ those things!" Suki glared back at Sokka as he pleaded for his life- she had decided to leave the restaurant a bit early after she thought she saw his eyes wandering a bit, and wondered exactly what they were _feeding_ that girl.

Sokka pulled his hair, looking into the sky- in all honesty, he had just been hanging around her because she smelled like tea- and not just a little- it was like she took a _bath_ in it, or something, and he was trying to figure out if it was her or her clothes- his thoughts were interrupted suddenly, though, as they approached the inn. "...Aang?"

Suki looked up, startled, and noticed what appeared to be Aang's head and shoulders sticking out of a large cracked hole in the wall above them- and he looked like he had taken quite the beating, judging from that swollen eye.

Sokka gave her a quick glance, and then looked back at Aang, waving his hand in front of his eyes. "...Suki, did you taste anything funny in our tea back there? Anything... cactus-y?"

Aang sighed, looking down at the pair below him, his head still ringing- he would have said something to them, if he wasn't sure that Toph would continue his beating if he tried. He could only make out brief mumbles coming from the window beside him- and he thought he might have even heard a _laugh_-

He suddenly felt a strong pair of hands grip his waist, pulling him back into the building in a cloud of dust. Toph patted him on the head gently with one hand, leaning down into his face to grin at him again. "Alright, twinkletoes- Suki still owes me a favor, so I'll be heading downstairs- you think you can handle things up here?"

He nodded weakly, and Toph disappeared through the doorway in a matter of seconds- as his head cleared, he realized that he still had a chance to catch something important from the next room- he threw himself against the wall, pressing his ear against a crack, just barely catching Azula's voice.

"-so, is that close enough for you yet, or am I actually going to have to _say_ it?"

Katara rested her hand on her chin, smirking. "No, I think that's good enough, actually."

Azula leaned back against her bed again, sighing. "Good- and you remember what I told you, right?"

Katara nodded curtly, standing and stretching a bit. "Of course- as long as _you_ remember what _I_ told you."

Azula laughed, cracking her fingers. "Don't worry- I'm not going to _hurt_ him. I mean, unless he _asks_-" she turned, glaring at the wall again, noticing a distinct lack of light coming from one of the cracks. "He's back- you should probably go make sure Toph left him in one piece." There was a small sigh as Aang retreated from the wall once more.

Katara stared for a moment, and slowly made her way for the door. "...So, you really think that I still-"

Azula laughed, cutting her off, and checked the wall again to make sure her mention of him had kept Aang away. "...Yes, of course you do- you just don't _realize_ it yet." She smirked at Katara, eyes blazing with intensity again. "...And you'd better hope that you do _soon_- because I'm not the type to let something good slip out of my hands when I _get_ it."

Katara sat for a moment, smiling grudgingly towards her. "I wouldn't approve if you _weren't_- just remember that I'll be _watching_."

Azula watched her slip slowly out the door. "...You know, you're better at this than Aang is." The door froze, not quite closing yet. "...I mean, one month with him- and I feel more insane _now_ than I _ever_ did trying to kill you all."

Katara leaned back in the door, smiling. "Yeah- I know the feeling- but I think you'll get used to it." Azula tried not to laugh at the idea, sinking back onto the bed and closing her eyes, finally. She was going to have to get some rest, now- there would undoubtedly be a meeting with Zuzu when he realized that she was missing from the asylum. She absently wondered if she or Aang had ever remembered to tell anyone exactly how _little_ he really knew about the trip, and shrugged to herself- it's not like it really mattered that much, now.


End file.
